


The Wisdom of Madmen

by LaDemonessa



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: BDSM Scene, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-21
Updated: 2014-08-21
Packaged: 2018-02-14 02:59:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2175570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaDemonessa/pseuds/LaDemonessa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Curiosity killed the cat. Garak stumbles upon Colonel Kira's plans to go after Dukat and manipulates Ezri into getting him some R&R so he can take a runabout only to have his plans thwarted by Dr. Bashir.  After convincing him that Kira is in danger they investigate only to become prisoners themselves. Contains elements of BDSM, sexual torture, and non-cons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Curiosity Killed the Cat

**Author's Note:**

> Please consider this to be an AU as this was written several years ago while the series was on-going so it is not canon-compliant. This whole thing started as a gift to Sophie Masse who required the following elements be present in the storyline: NC-17, bdsm, anal, whipping, bondage, dildos, seven gates of hell, leather fetish, shoe fetish, and that it had to be a G/B, K/D, B/D, G/D, or G/K. 
> 
> I was 50 Shades of Grey before that shit ever happened, baby!
> 
> Definitely not my usual thing but a lot of people seemed to like it. ;p Hopefully you will, too.
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy. ---Jen

The Wisdom of Madmen  
By JA Ingram

 

When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind; the stalk of  
grain that forms no ear can yield no flour; Even if it could, strangers  
would swallow it. Israel is swallowed up; he is now among the nations a  
thing of no value. They went up to Assyria-a wild ass off on its  
own-Ephraim bargained for lovers. Even though they bargain with the  
nations, I will gather an army; King and princes shall shortly succumb  
under the burden.

Hosea 8:7-10 Old Testament

 

 

Curiosity killed the cat.

A very interesting Earth proverb, whose lesson shall long be remembered  
after this experience, Garak thought to himself quietly. He adjusted his  
arms, which were chained to the wall and winced at the discordant clash  
of metal against stone. Doctor Bashir was finally either asleep or  
unconscious, as his head lolled uncomfortably to rest against his  
upraised arms. Colonel Kira was kept in other rooms, and Garak didn't  
worry about her too much--despite being mad and vindictive, Dukat still  
considered himself a lover of women. Her cell, though equally fast,  
would be of satin ties and perfumed sheets and he doubted she was in  
immediate danger. Dukat, for the moment, was happy enough to take out  
his frustration on just the doctor and himself.

Garak leaned his aching head against the dank stone walls. If he weren't  
in so much pain, he'd be forced to admit an admiration for Dukat's  
showmanship at least. The dungeon, odd sexual tortures, even the long  
drawn out monologues Dukat subjected them to had a theatrical appeal  
about them. Garak winced suddenly as a muscle in his calf began to  
spasm. Of, course, he thought grimly, it would be easier to admire it if  
he weren't the target of this melodrama.

Bashir let out a raspy moan and shifted uneasily.

Ah yes, curiosity killed the cat...

 

Prologue....

Garak scowled at the PADD in front of him and sipped at his tea  
distractedly, this particular sequence had been giving him trouble all  
morning.

"Sorry I'm late," Bashir stepped up to their table slightly winded.

Garak looked up with an apologetic grin, "Actually doctor, sorry to say  
I hadn't even noticed. I've been too busy unscrambling code all  
morning," he motioned for a waitress, "Ready to order?"

"Gods, yes--I'm positively famished!" Bashir said with a sigh as he sat  
in the chair across from his friend with a boneless grace, "It's been a  
rough morning--I thought I'd never make it in time for lunch!"

The waitress came up and both ordered. After making his selection, Garak  
sat in amused silence as Bashir began to count off several dishes,  
revealing just how hungry he really was. After their waitress left,  
Bashir caught the look on Garak's face and responded, "I missed  
breakfast."

"No need to explain--truth be told, I'm very interested in discovering  
how you're going to manage to consume all of those dishes and not have  
to bring in all your uniforms for a refitting," Garak replied dryly as  
he tapped at his PADD distractedly.

Bashir scowled, "I'm equally curious as to how you're going to drink  
that container of seasoning in your hand."

Garak looked down and saw he was about to sip from a salt shaker.  
Placing it on the table along with his PADD, he nodded in apology,  
"Forgive me, doctor. It was very rude of me to ignore our conversation."

Bashir grimaced apologetically, "Nonsense. I'm the one, who was being  
rude--I'm sorry," Garak nodded in acceptance as the waitress brought over  
their order. When she left Bashir immediately took a large bite and  
sighed, "Mmm! Good!"

Garak ate leisurely and smiled in amusement as the doctor wolfed down  
his meal, "You weren't exaggerating about being hungry then?"

Bashir chuckled around his fork; "It's been a busy day--very stressful."

Garak nodded in sympathy; "War does have a habit of making things quite  
stressful, yes."

"Indeed," Bashir replied ruefully, "I had two broken bones to mend,  
several inoculations, a surgery, and I still have a paper I'm working on  
for Starfleet Medical. Not only that, but after Colonel Kira left so  
abruptly I had to take over some of her duties and..."

Garak paused, "The Colonel left?"

"Yes," Bashir nodded, "It was quite unexpected. One minute she was going  
over some routine reports and the next thing you know she goes into  
Captain Sisko's office and requests indefinite leave," he sipped at his  
cup, "Very unlike her."

Garak found himself curiously intrigued by this bit of information. He  
wasn't used to not knowing something before the doctor and he found it  
to be mildly disconcerting, still it wasn't exactly earth shattering  
news. He shrugged, "Well, doctor, you're hardly in any position to judge  
the Colonel's behaviour as being anything out of the ordinary, now are  
you?"

Julian arched a superior brow, "Pardon me? I think after working with  
the Colonel all these years I know her fairly well and this is totally  
unlike her."

"Nonsense," Garak scoffed, enjoying the return of their once familiar  
banter, "No one can ever truly *know* anyone," Garak gave him a slow  
smile, "After all, that's what makes life so interesting."

~*~

Garak sat in his darkened shop and stared into the unrelenting lines of  
numbers and symbols littering the surface of his PADD. Finally, he  
dropped it with an exhausted sigh and rubbed his temples wearily. He  
desperately needed a break. He glanced around his shop stifling a yawn.  
He hadn't bothered opening it up to the public for well over two months  
now, but despite his boredom, he didn't feel like donning the guise of a  
simple tailor. What he craved was a challenge--a small one. Just a  
little something to help him regain his focus. He glanced at the  
chronometer and noted that it was still early and several of the senior  
staff would no doubt be at Quark's enjoying whatever free time the  
conflict with the Dominion would allow.

Again, he frowned. No--playing tongo with Quark or elbowing his way into  
Julian and Miles' dart game was not the type of challenge he desired. He  
needed...

He reached down and grabbed an unused PADD. Typing in several codes he  
began to hack the station logs to discover what the Colonel had been  
doing before she hastily left the station. A bit of nosing about might  
prove to be a sufficient...hello.

Garak looked down at his screen with a grin; it was the activity report  
on that day's shipping and flight clearance through Bajoran space. It  
was standard procedure to review flight plans for any discrepancies,  
obviously something in this report must have set Kira off.

Garak rolled his eyes; he was beginning to sound like the doctor. Oh  
well, he smiled to himself; it was just a game. A little exaggeration  
was all a part of the fun. He began to scan through them quickly but  
thoroughly.

Five minutes later, he found it.

He almost missed it, but luckily, his memory had proved unfazed despite  
the years since leaving the Order. There was a flight plan logged by a  
small freighter heading out of Bajoran space by one M'yal Kat.

Colonel Kira's half-brother.

Garak put down the PADD and walked up to the replicator to order another  
cup of tea. In the years since his first acquaintance with the doctor,  
Garak had come to appreciate the hot Terran beverage both for it's  
bracing qualities and for the warmth it provided. When Dukat was his  
political adversary, he'd made it his business to know every facet of  
the man's life, which included his personal relationships with Bajoran  
civilians.

Kira Meru, the Colonel's mother, had been Dukat's concubine for several  
years before dying in surgery. What official records didn't show was  
that the surgery in question was a Caesarean section and both she and  
the male infant died. Garak remained very literate on Dukat's many  
bastards and sexual proclivities--they were very handy to have around,  
especially during those volatile political debates and campaigns. How  
Colonel Kira knew about the infant, much less his name, was another  
mystery.

For much of the remainder of the night, Garak researched the station's  
databases and the Colonel's own logs. The thrill of sneaking past Odo's  
security protocols would be worth the exhaustion he would feel during  
the many security briefs scheduled for the next day. Then, about an hour  
before his appointed meeting with the Captain, he found the answer yet  
again.

"I cannot believe this man was actually the leader of Cardassia," Garak  
scoffed disgustedly, "Sloppy."

There, right where anyone with a passing knowledge of Cardassian data  
keeping could find it, was the name of the doctor who signed Kira Meru's  
death certificate: Jemal Nurin. The man was a very well regarded  
obstetrician at the time that served both Bajoran collaborators of high  
rank and Cardassian officers' wives and mistresses. From there it would  
have been impossible for Kira not to assume that her mother may have  
died in childbirth, research any birth documents near the date of her  
death and find a certificate registered for one M'yal Kat, a  
half-Cardassian male born to Kira Meru.

Dukat always was too sentimental about his bastards, Garak thought a bit  
unkindly. Because the child was male and his firstborn he'd allowed Meru  
to give him his clan name of Kat, which would demonstrate to society he  
was a regarded illegitimate child. According to Cardassian custom, the  
boy would never be able to claim actual rights as a firstborn son-but  
would be granted a higher status than most bastards in that he could own  
land and be received into military service. It was unusual, but not  
uncommon to do so. The uncommon part in this little drama was that this  
was a half-Bajoran child, and such a status was usually reserved only  
for full-blooded Cardassian children born of mothers of lower castes  
whom society would deem appropriate for bound concubines but not wives.  
This was usually done when a head of a great house could not beget  
children from a politically arranged marriage yet still wanted a blood  
heir.

Oh yes, Garak was very familiar with this particular custom, indeed.

He probably did this only because he knew the child would not survive,  
but it was still very foolish of him, both politically and personally.  
At the very least he should have deleted all the records...but then, in  
his foolish sentimentality, he may indeed have done himself a favour.

Garak could not find the child's death certificate, although he knew the  
child did not survive. It was during this time period that he had been  
assigned to watch Dukat's movements very carefully and he remembered  
watching with amusement as Dukat shuffled first one of his pregnant  
mistresses then another, and his wife, into the offices without allowing  
them to know the others existed. The highest offices in the Obsidian  
Order would whisper of Dukat's unusually fertile season with near  
demonic glee. It had truly been one for the books.

The doctor's nurse kept them informed on the progress of the pregnancies  
as well as the scheduled appointments and such. When the child died,  
Garak was informed of this as well. Tora Nepraim, Dukat's other mistress  
and Sha'al Dukat, his wife, both gave birth to healthy girls some months  
later. That a freighter should 'happen' to be captained by a Bajoran  
named M'yal Kat only weeks after Dukat himself went underground after  
the embarrassing cult incident, was-to say the least-somewhat suspect.  
If Garak were a logical man, which he was, he would assume that Dukat  
had chosen a convenient new identity so that he could get past Bajoran  
security.

Dukat may well be mad, but he was never stupid.

Foolishly weak willed, but not stupid.

The easiest and most effective identity switch was to take the name and  
papers of a deceased infant. Garak had done it himself on more than one  
occasion. That Dukat had chosen the name of his own son was a  
sentimental error of almost embarrassing proportions. Of course, such  
information wasn't widespread; then again it had hardly been proven the  
most discreet of identities as Kira's sudden departure had demonstrated.

Therefore, it would not be such a drastic jump in logic to assume that  
Kira was on a personal mission to find Dukat. Garak didn't bother to  
hypothesise as to why she would recklessly endanger herself by not  
informing command of this revelation as the Colonel had demonstrated, at  
least to him, that she was more than a little independent. If she felt  
she had an agenda that did not coincide with that of her government or  
the Federation, she also would not feel the need to inform them of her  
decision.

Again, Garak almost grew disgusted with the fact that these were the  
same people who were slowly but surely winning the war against  
Cardassia. The fact that he was aiding them in that fight was  
irrelevant. These people had no respect for proper intelligence  
protocols. As an intelligence operative, he more than understood the  
term 'need to know', but this was highly improper of an officer who had  
ascended the ranks as quickly as Kira had.

This is what happens when ragtag terrorists suddenly become ranking  
military. It was enough to make one a pacifist.

He yawned and looked at the chrono--twenty minutes until his debriefing  
on yesterday's transmissions and then the staff meeting in Ops. For a  
moment he debated as to whether or not he should share this information  
with Sisko. If he told him, he would undoubtedly reap some reward--a bit  
more freedom in the short term, but in the broader view, he'd probably  
be considered even more of a liability. After all, hacking the station's  
computer could not simply be disregarded as concern over a 'friend',  
especially as they were not friends by any definition. If he didn't tell  
them, then Dukat would escape and Kira would, in all likelihood, either  
get herself killed or distract them from their primary mission because  
Sisko would have to organise a rescue party, wasting precious manpower  
over a foolish young woman with more rank than common sense.

Sisko, like Dukat, was a man who allowed sentimentality to get the  
better of him.

Garak looked at the growing pile of PADDs on his desk. He looked over  
the flight plans logged both by Kira and the freighter captain Garak  
assumed was Dukat. They appeared to be heading out toward Orion space,  
non-Federation space but fairly safe. The area was well known to him, as  
it was comprised mostly of privately owned moons and pleasure planets.  
Businessmen and retired government officials who had amassed their  
fortunes through less than legitimate often chose to retire on because  
no one, as a rule, bothered asking nasty questions about extradition and  
tax evasion. In fact, if Tain had not chosen the Arowath Colony, he most  
likely would have gone to someplace very similar.

Garak again looked at the chrono--fifteen minutes left.

Perhaps it was time that he, too, took a short vacation...

~*~

"He wants to go to Bajor for a few days."

Sisko frowned cynically, "Garak wants to go to Bajor. And why is that,  
old man?"

"Benjamin," Dax frowned as she leaned forward a bit, "It's not all that  
surprising that Garak would want to get away for a while. I mean, with  
his claustrophobia, the best thing for him *would* be to spend a few  
days on the planet. As his counsellor, I highly approve of it!"

"Perhaps...if we were talking about any other person aboard this  
station, then yes, I could see that. Garak, however..." he shook his  
head, "I can't approve that order."

Ezri scowled, "Ben--this is a medical leave he's requesting, besides  
which, he's not a member of Starfleet! At best he might fall under the  
designation of civilian contractor and if he wants to go, you can't stop  
him."

"Dax," Benjamin said in a deceptively cordial tone, "I'm not saying he  
can't leave--I'm just not approving his use of a shuttlecraft to do so.  
He's perfectly free to hire a civilian transport..." Sisko grinned,  
flashing a brilliant amount of white teeth, "...of course, that's if he  
could find one not owned either by Starfleet or the Bajoran government,  
which, given the current situation, is doubtful."

"Ben..." Dax warned through gritted teeth.

Chief O'Brien chose to take that moment to knock at the door, "Captain,  
I have today's release forms for the runabouts ready and waiting your  
approval."

"Certainly," Sisko replied urging the Chief to come forward.

While he looked over the reports, Ezri continued her  
argument.  


"You know, isn't it sad that an officer can just decide to take off with  
no explanation and get the unlimited use of a shuttlecraft especially  
when we're stretched so thin, but someone with a legitimate request for  
medical leave can't even get transport to Bajor?"

Miles looked from first one to the other, "If I'm interrupting your  
meeting..."

"That's all right Chief," Sisko said, putting the PADD down for a  
moment. "The reason I approved Kira's use of the shuttlecraft was  
because she is a respected officer--Garak is not and we don't have  
enough resources right now to justify allowing every civilian who  
requests a transport to go off with one of our runabouts. If Garak feels  
the need for wide open spaces, we'll have Quark make a holosuite  
available 26 hours a day until the end of his leave," Sisko replied  
smoothly.

"That's ridiculous." Ezri argued.

"If it was good enough for Nog, it's good enough for Mr Garak." he  
reasoned, "New transmissions are arriving from Cardassia daily and we  
need him here to decode them."

"All he's asking for is a few days," Ezri argued in a reasonable tone  
which was at odds with her deepening scowl, "and Bajor is close enough  
that if any new transmissions come through then he can easily decode  
them from there."

"The way this war is going, even the loss of one available transport  
could make the difference..."

"Bullshit." Ezri said simply, "If that were the case, then why is it  
Kira could just waltz in here and--"

"Captain," O'Brien interrupted in a strained tone, "I really need you to  
sign these orders."

"In a minute, Chief," they replied simultaneously.

"You know, I think the real reason you don't want to give Garak a  
runabout is because you want to keep him where you can see him."

"You're just figuring that out?" Sisko asked with a snort, "Of course I  
do! Mr Garak is the least trustworthy individual I..."

"Excuse me!" O'Brien broke in, "I don't mean to rush you Captain, but I  
still have to work on upper pylon three and finish my own reports  
sometime today. If you could just sign those orders, I'll be on my  
way..." O'Brien cleared his throat, "...sir."

Sisko straightened his shoulders slightly, "Sorry, Chief. Leave these  
with me and I'll look them over then register them personally."

O'Brien gave the officer an apologetic grin, "Thank you, Captain. What  
with Kira being gone, it's been a struggle getting anything done today."

"Tell me about it," Sisko sighed, "Dismissed."

As the Chief hurried off, Ezri gave Sisko a meaningful look; "Those are  
the shuttle approvals?"

"Dax..." Sisko said impatiently.

"What?" she said snatching them away and looking through them, "I'll  
help you...and at the same time I'm sure we can figure out a way to get  
Mr. Garak down to Bajor."

Despite his growing annoyance, Sisko found himself grinning in return;  
"It's good to have you back, old man."

She blinked then gave him a radiant smile. "Thank you, Benjamin, that's  
very sweet of you to say."

"I'd almost forgotten what a pain in the ass you were." he added.

She shot him a glare, "Funny...what's this?"

Sisko glanced at the PADD, "That's a short run to Bajor to drop off some  
reports. The shuttle's coming straight back--besides, Mr. Garak wants to  
go to the opposite side of the planet."

She nodded reluctantly and continued to read, "What about this transport  
tomorrow morning?"

Sisko looked down again to where she was pointing, "No, that's not even  
headed in the same direction."

She sighed then began to study the PADD again.

"You might as well face it, old man, Garak will have to make do with  
a..."

"A-ha!" She handed him the PADD triumphantly, "Julian is taking a  
shuttle to Deep Space Seven for a conference on the Jem' Hadar and the  
production of white. His flight path goes right past the far side of  
Bajor."

"He's not even going to Bajor, though," Sisko pointed out.

"He can drop him off." she quipped.

Sisko sat in silence for a moment. Ezri arched an elegant eyebrow in  
response, "Unless the real reason you don't want him to go is because  
his loyalty is under question."

"I'd be insane not to question his 'loyalty' as you put it," he  
responded easily.

"Benjamin, Garak has sacrificed a lot for this war..." she began.

Sisko snorted, "For which he's been compensated."

"With credits and living expenses?" Her next comments had a decidedly  
sarcastic edge, "If you'll recall, the only reason I'm still aboard DS9  
is that you thought it was necessary for Garak to have a personal  
counsellor. Now that I'm here you're just going to sweep my  
recommendations aside because you don't like the patient?"

"It's not that I don't like Mr Garak, it's that I don't trust Mr Garak,"  
Sisko replied easily.

"It's just a short leave, he's not going to steal Bajoran state secrets,  
Ben." Ezri said irritably.

"How do you know?" Sisko countered.

"Ooh!" Ezri grumbled, "You are so--so..."

"Ah ah ah!" Sisko grinned, "I'm still your superior officer, old man."

"HUMPH!"

At that moment, Dr. Bashir poked his head through the door, "Captain? I  
have those reports you requested."

"Come in, doctor," Sisko invited.

Bashir nodded cordially to Ezri then handed a PADD to the captain,  
"Chief O'Brien says the shuttlecraft is ready, so I'll be headed toward  
DS7 as soon as I finish one or two things in the infirmary."

"Should I let Garak know?" Ezri asked Sisko with a pointed look.

"Let Garak know what?" Julian asked curiously.

Sisko cleared his throat, "There's been a slight change in plans,  
doctor."

"There has?" Julian asked with a growing sense of foreboding.

Sisko grimaced, caught in his own game as Ezri smiled triumphantly,  
"As it turns out, you're going to having some company on your trip to DS7."

"Who?"

"Garak." Ezri said in near glee.

"Garak." Julian replied dumbly.

"Garak wants to go to Bajor," Sisko explained.

Julian blinked, "Why?"

"He didn't tell us," Sisko answered uncomfortably, "He just said he  
needed to get away for a few days and I want you to drop him off on your  
way out of the system."

"By all means then," Bashir said sarcastically, "Will one baby-sitter be  
enough?"

"Not at all amusing, doctor." Sisko warned.

"Captain, this is not a pleasure outing," he argued, "I'm meeting with  
several top scientists and doctors! This paper is highly important."

"So is Mr Garak's state of mind until after this conflict is settled,"  
Sisko commanded, "You will be escorting him to Bajor."

Bashir remained silent for a moment before replying reluctantly, "Very  
well, sir."

Ezri got up and clapped him on the shoulder, "Thanks Julian."

Bashir turned and left the office, "You're welcome."

~*~

Garak looked up from his PADD to see Ezri Dax waving at him through the  
window of his closed shop. Walking over to the entrance he gestured for  
her to join him, "Good morning, Counsellor. How may I..."

"I have some good news for you, Garak," she interrupted with a wide  
grin.

"Oh?"

"You're going to Bajor!" she beamed happily.

Garak smiled back in response, "That is wonderful news. When can I take  
the runabout?"

Her smile slipped a bit, "Well, actually, someone's going to be dropping  
you off."

Garak's expression grew less readable as he absorbed her words, "Ah."

"Dr. Bashir--Julian--is, um, passing by and he's agreed to beam you down  
to the planet's surface." She watched him with some concern as he  
crossed the room avoiding eye contact with her, "Garak, you can't  
honestly expect Captain Sisko to just hand you an expensive piece of  
equipment like a runabout, now can you?"

"I suppose not, " he sighed, "It does change my plans a bit though..."

"How so?" her brow wrinkled in concern.

Garak responded with a smooth and reassuring expression, "Merely that I  
had planned on being alone for the trip. It's so rare to be granted any  
amount of privacy these days..."

"Oh. Of course," she nodded, "Julian's shuttle is leaving in twenty  
minutes--have you already packed?"

"Yes," he led her to the door, "I just have one or two loose ends to tie  
up and I'll be on my way."

"Good luck."

"Thank you," he said as she walked away from the small storefront, "Oh,  
and Lt. Dax--"

"Yes?" she inquired, turning to face him.

"I truly do thank you for championing my cause."

Ezri flushed with pleasure, "Anytime, Garak."

The Cardassian waited until she had turned the corner and he was out of  
her view before quickly closing up the shop and hurrying across the  
promenade. As he passed Quark's, he suddenly paused and looked into the  
near empty bar to it's one and only patron at the early hour.

"Mr. Morn."

The large lumbering alien looked up from his drink and glowered in  
greeting, as Garak approached him with a friendly smile, "I have a  
proposition for you--one that I believe will be to our  
mutual...satisfaction."

Morn gave him a startled look before scooting his seat over in  
trepidation.

"I assure you my intentions are most honourable and businesslike," Garak  
promised reassuringly, but Morn still appeared rather reluctant, "May I  
sit down for a moment?"


	2. "Where the hell is Garak?"

~*~

"Where the hell is Garak?" Julian grumbled as he looked at the time.

"Mr Garak is probably just getting his luggage together," Sisko replied,  
also appearing contrite despite his words of reassurance, "He'll be  
here in a moment."

"Captain--" Bashir scowled, "Can't someone else take him to Bajor? I  
really am running..."

"Here I am!" Garak appeared slightly out of breath as he hurried toward  
the airlock with his bag slung around one shoulder. He was only slightly  
winded, however, and greeted both officers cordially, "Forgive me for  
being a bit late--there were a few matters I had to attend to before  
leaving the station."

"Of course, Mr Garak," Sisko replied as Bashir shot him a disgruntled  
look and picked up his own bags, "Your rooms have been booked at the  
hotel and Starfleet will be taking care of all your expenses."

"Thank you, Captain," the Cardassian inclined his head, "That's most  
generous of you."

"Nonsense," Sisko flashed him a dangerous smile, "Until this war is at  
an end, both I and the Federation want you to be as comfortable as  
possible."

Reaching out, Sisko tapped the panel causing the doors to slide open,  
"Make sure to check in with us as soon as you are settled."

The obvious inference was not lost on the tailor, "Naturally," he  
replied as he followed the doctor into the airlock.

~*~

Garak hummed under his breath slightly as he tapped on the runabout's  
console causing Julian to glare in annoyance, "Could you please not do  
that?"

"Pardon me?" Garak asked, breaking the silence.

"Humming," Bashir cleared his throat, "It's rather annoying."

Garak arched a brow ridge, "Forgive me, doctor. I didn't mean to  
offend."

"I didn't say it was offensive," the younger man replied, "just that it  
was annoying."

Garak was silent for a moment as he studied the hard countenance of the  
other man, "Are you angry with me?"

"What?"

"You haven't spoken a civil word to me since we left the station so I  
merely assumed you were angry with me for some reason."

Julian looked over at his companion, "I'm not angry, Garak. I am,  
however, in a hurry and although I realise it's not your fault, my  
having to drop you off at Bajor is..."

"Inconvenient." he finished.

"Yes," the younger man agreed, "I'm sorry if I was rude about it,  
however."

"I understand perfectly," Garak waved off the apology, "It's a  
rather...inconvenient situation for me as well."

"How so?" Bashir inquired as Garak got up and moved toward the end of  
the small cabin.

"Well, truth be told, I hadn't expected to be travelling with anyone  
today, although I suppose that was a bit fanciful a notion considering  
my position aboard the station."

"True," his companion agreed.

"Luckily, I also believe in always being prepared for any eventuality,"  
he added cordially.

"We should be reaching Bajor in less than three minutes," Julian replied  
as he began to type in the co-ordinates for the transporter, "You might  
want to get your things together."

"That won't be necessary," Garak assured him as he returned to the front  
of the cabin.

"Why--ooohhh..." the dusky skinned man mouthed as he fell forward with  
the hiss of the hypospray at his neck.

"Because," Garak said, adjusting the now prone physician so that he lay  
back into the chair, "I don't believe I'll be going to Bajor after all."

He quickly sat back down and activated the transporter, ensuring that  
if someone decided to check the logs, his 'departure' would be noted.

On the planet's surface, the air shimmered slightly before again  
appearing normal. A passing Bajoran man saw this and huffed, "Damned  
tourists."

~*~

Sisko looked up from his paperwork to the chronometer on the wall. By  
now, Garak should have long since checked in. With a weary sigh, he  
tapped the console on his desk and, almost instantly, the face of a  
Bajoran man appeared onscreen.

"Emissary! Oh--"

"Good afternoon," Ben greeted, "I wish to inquire about one of your  
guests."

The man smiled engagingly, "Ah! Yes, Emissary. Mr Garak, I believe?"

Sisko nodded, "Has he checked in yet?"

"Oh, yes sir. Just a few hours ago in fact," the Bajoran cleared his  
throat a bit, "I suggested to him that perhaps he'd be  
more...comfortable in his quarters until later in the day. It can be  
quite hectic at this time and Mr Garak is a rather...unusual  
guest--wouldn't you agree?"

The dark skinned officer nodded politely in response, "Nevertheless, I  
would consider it a personal favour if you would overlook Mr Garak's  
unique status, and see to it that he is kept comfortable."

"Of course," the older gentlemen agreed soberly, "We, at the Hotel  
D'Sarma, are known for our discretion, Emissary."

"I appreciate that," he rejoined with a grateful smile, "Is there any  
way I could speak to Mr Garak?"

The man suddenly appeared contrite, "Forgive me, Emissary, but I'm  
afraid that won't be possible."

"Oh? And why is that?"

The man scratched his chin and appeared embarrassed, "The...wiring in  
this building is quite old. Unfortunately, the power to Mr Garak's suite  
has been going out intermittently since he arrived. In fact, I've been  
hearing complaints from several of the guests about..."

"That's quite all right," the officer interrupted, "Just tell Mr Garak  
that as soon as he's able to, I would appreciate it if he could report  
in."

"I will, Emissary. Good day."

Benjamin ended the transmission and folded his hands thoughtfully.  
Although he would have felt better having talked to the tailor himself,  
knowing that he was settling in did take at least one more worry off his  
overburdened mind.

Now if only things would continue to go so well...

~*~

Bashir awoke to the sound of someone singing off-key, and allowed his  
bleary eyes to focus on his surroundings. As he looked around, he  
remembered what had happened: Garak had drugged him then, apparently,  
moved him to the rear of the cabin. As to why he had done such a thing,  
he hadn't a clue.

Suppressing a moan due to the dull ache in his head, he reached for a  
phaser on the wall near the bunk and carefully made his way toward  
Garak.

The Cardassian froze as the barrel of the weapon was pressed against the  
sensitive skin of his broad neck.

"I take it our travel plans have changed," Bashir said in a raspy tone.

"Ah, good afternoon," Garak smiled carefully at his angry companion,  
"Did you enjoy your nap, doctor?"

"My nap?" Julian repeated incredulously, "You drugged me!"

"Yes, and I didn't do a very good job of it either," Garak appeared  
perturbed, "You were supposed to be out for another two hours. Really  
doctor, your genetically enhanced metabolism is most inconvenient."

The dark skin of the younger man grew even more flushed with agitation,  
"Am I supposed to apologise! Now, what the hell is going on? Why are we  
heading out of Federation space?" he asked looking down at the flight  
display.

"If you must know..." Garak began.

"Oh, you're goddamn right I 'must' know!" he rejoined heatedly.

Garak sighed, "There's no need to lose your temper, doctor. We're on a  
rescue mission."

"Right." he snapped, "Turn this ship around now--as soon as we get  
within communications range, I'm reporting this to the captain."

"No need to be abusive," Garak sighed, "I'm more than willing to leave  
poor Colonel Kira to the mercies of Dukat if you are..."

"What are you babbling about Garak?" Julian snapped.

Garak sniffed in disdain, "I think you had best reword that last  
statement, doctor. I do not babble."

The Cardassian hid a smile as he watched a muscle in Bashir's jaw work  
in silent fury before the young man finally got his emotions under  
control; "I...apologise. Now, what was this 'mission' about exactly and  
how does it relate to the Colonel?"

"Care to sit down?" Garak offered the seat beside him congenially.

Reluctantly, Bashir sat but not before cutting the engines.

Garak looked at him with no little annoyance, "You know, we are on a  
tight schedule."

"Then you had best talk fast," Bashir replied coolly.

Almost against his will, Garak gave the younger man a broad grin, "You  
know, despite having been born into a hopelessly optimistic Federation  
dogma, you have become almost Cardassian in your mannerisms. Well said,  
doctor."

"I don't take that as a compliment, Garak, and you are avoiding the  
issue." Bashir snapped, not amused in the least by the other man's  
verbal antics.

"Of course, a true Cardassian wouldn't be nearly as ill mannered," he  
muttered, " For reasons unknown to me, the Colonel is on a personal  
quest to capture Gul Dukat. In this mission, she will undoubtedly be  
outgunned and most likely killed," he looked at his companion candidly,  
"We are going to rescue her."

For a moment Julian just absorbed the tailor's statement, "Do you  
honestly expect me to believe a word of that story?"

"No," Garak replied, "but for once, it is the total and complete truth,  
Doctor."

"Somehow I doubt that," Julian sat back in his chair and stared  
sightlessly at the carpet of stars ahead of them.

"Well, perhaps I have neglected one or two points of interest," he  
admitted, "but then, full disclosure is hardly entertaining."

"From you, Garak, full disclosure would not only be entertaining, but  
awe inspiring. How is it you came upon this information, exactly?"

"I have my methods, Doctor." He stated cryptically.

"Not good enough," Bashir gave him a hard look, "Why didn't you bring  
this information to Sisko if you were so convinced Kira was in danger?"

Garak approached the question calmly; "Certain parties felt it would be  
of a greater benefit to all concerned if this mission was not handled  
through official channels."

"Which parties would that be?" Julian appeared doubtful.

"That I cannot reveal at this time." He said smoothly.

"Why should I believe a word of this?" Bashir questioned sarcastically.

"You shouldn't," Garak rejoined, "but while you sit there congratulating  
yourself on your Vulcan-like logic, your friend and fellow officer is  
most likely being tortured by a madman with a grudge."

Julian hesitated for a brief moment before hitting the panel, allowing  
them to continue on their journey.

"Thank you, Doctor," Garak replied checking their heading, "You won't  
regret this decision."

"Oh, I already do!" he stated coldly, "Make no mistake, Garak---I'm  
watching every move you make and whether or not you are telling the  
truth, there will be consequences to your misappropriation of a  
Starfleet vessel and unprovoked attack on an officer."

Garak merely gave him an enigmatic smile and continued in silence.

~ * ~

Several hours later they arrived at the small privately owned moon known  
only as K2-5. Anonymity was apparently more important to the xenophobic  
rich patrons of this particular sector than poetry. The trip had been  
spent silently if not companionably, so Garak had at least been able to  
plan their 'mission' in peace.

"You're not just going to land on the moon's surface, are you?" Bashir  
remarked a bit patronisingly, breaking his sulk at last. At least,  
that's what Garak had been mentally calling it since their last  
argument.

"That's exactly what I plan on doing," Garak replied as he piloted them  
into the atmosphere.

"I thought the point of this little excursion was to save the Colonel,  
not get captured ourselves," Julian scowled.

"I assure you, I have researched this mission thoroughly and performed  
scans of the surface. The only security sensors I detected are in the  
compound itself. The possibility of our being detected is low at best."

Julian appeared doubtful as he braced for the small bump caused by the  
landing, "I hardly think that Dukat, mad though he may be, would be so  
negligent as to ignore the possibility that he may have been followed."

Garak arose with a long suffering sigh and led the way out of the  
runabout, "And I assure you, doctor, that I know Dukat far better than  
yourself and we have not been..."

Click.

"...detected."

Both men looked at the small group of conservatively dressed gentlemen  
who were now pointing disrupters at their heads.

"You were saying?" Julian asked dryly as he raised his arms in  
surrender.

~*~


	3. Seven Gates of Hell

Garak shifted uneasily as he attempted to find a more comfortable  
position to sit in. It was an impossible task as his arms were chained  
above his head and his bottom rested upon the cold and uneven surface of  
the stone floor.

Trust Dukat to choose a vacation home that was both gauche and cliché.

Julian, also uncomfortable and attempting to arrange his arms so that  
they would not go numb, occasionally glared over in the Cardassian's  
direction muttering unintelligible curses.

"Doctor, your childish sulking is getting quite tiresome. If there is  
something you'd like to say..."

"Oh, there are plenty of things I could say right now! Most of them  
obscene and certainly in violation of the Hippocratic oath," he said  
darkly.

"I take it that you blame me for our capture?" Garak asked with a raised  
eyeridge.

Bashir's jaw dropped in surprise, "Yes! What? Are you implying that this  
isn't all your fault?"

"Actually doctor, I'm not attempting to imply anything. If I were to lay  
the blame at anyone's feet though, it would be at your own."

"You're saying it's my fault?!?" Julian was taken aback, "How in hell  
did you come to that conclusion, might I ask?"

"Simply put, had you not interfered with my plans to begin with, the  
mission wouldn't have failed," he shrugged.

"How in hell did I interfere with your plans? You're the one who  
kidnapped me!" Julian expounded in outrage.

"You kept distracting me," Garak replied, "Obviously that caused me to  
overlook a discrepancy on the monitors. Either that or Federation  
technology isn't as reliable as your people tend to believe."

"You are...you are..." Julian's chains rattled against the stone walls as he  
turned toward the Cardassian, "You are the most frustrating and bull  
headed person I have ever met!"

Garak smiled at him pleasantly, "Why, thank you. Tenacity is viewed as a  
valued attribute to my people."

"Oh shut up," Julian snapped.

"Your friendship with the chief has made you quite surly of late,  
doctor," Garak sniffed in distaste, "I used to think of you as well  
mannered."

Julian stewed for precisely two seconds before turning again to the  
Cardassian, his chains rattling in protest, "Just answer one question  
for me Garak; why did you decide to come all this way? Why go to all  
this trouble, and don't say it was to save Kira. I'm not stupid."

"The truth?" Garak looked at him from the corner of his eye.

"That would be a novel experience, wouldn't it? Yes--the truth," came the  
sarcastic rejoinder.

"I was bored."

Julian went still, "What?"

He shrugged, "I was bored. All I had these days was codes and staff  
meetings, so when I happened upon this information, I decided to pursue  
it."

Julian remained unresponsive so Garak turned to look at his companion,  
his own chains rattling against the stone walls, "You did ask,  
remember?"

The human lightly rested the back of his head against the wall, "You  
were...bored."

"Well, I could have come up with a far more dramatic reason, doctor, but  
you were rather insistent upon hearing the truth."

"From now on, Garak--lie to me," Julian winced at the sudden pain in his  
temples, "Better yet, just don't talk to me at all, okay?"

"Very well," he shrugged.

"Bravo!"

Both men looked toward the tall, lanky Cardassian approaching them from  
the doorway. Gul Dukat was clapping and grinning broadly, "Oh my, this  
will prove to be most entertaining!"

Garak looked at his life-long enemy through narrowed eyes, "And what,  
pray tell, is this?"

Dukat looked down at them both and slowly smiled his once intelligent  
eyes now suffused with madness; "This is the primordial struggle between  
good and evil! This is life and death itself!" he stopped and cocked his  
head as though listening to a silent voice for a moment, "Well, your  
life and death, that is."

Two human men came in and approached both the prisoners, quickly  
injecting them with some sort of chemical. Just before Julian lost  
consciousness, he heard Dukat repeat the words, "Don't worry, it won't  
be long, I assure you."

~*~

Hours later, as Garak forced himself to breath through the incredible  
pain brought on by the whip which was slowly skinning him alive, he  
almost wished the rest of his life would rush toward that rapid  
conclusion as promised by Dukat.

Again and again-the leather bit deeply into the tender and abused flesh  
of his back. He wasn't surprised by Dukat's torture methods, he had been  
whipped before, but his tormentor was particularly adept at her task not  
to mention the fact that she was also quite enthusiastic.

"Kira!" Bashir strained against his bonds, his face now a tortured  
canvas which served as a silent witness to his own torments. His left  
eye was swollen shut and his bottom lip was split and still bleeding.  
"Nerys! Stop this!"

Had Garak the strength to speak he would have told Julian that reasoning  
with the Bajoran woman was futile. Whatever drugs Dukat had her on were  
very effective. The pale and fine boned features of her face were now  
contorted with a madness reflective of her 'master's' own. Her arm  
flashed through the air and the blows she delivered to his bloody back  
proved accurate and deep once more.

"Oh do be quiet Bashir." Dukat sat back in his plush chair and absently  
toyed with the stem of his glass. "You're distracting her."

"Stop this Dukat." Julian glared murderously at the Cardassian. "She's  
killing him!"

Dukat yawned and sipped at his drink. "You always were rather  
melodramatic, Doctor."

Nevertheless, ten blows later Dukat called out to the Colonel to cease  
her torture of the exhausted and weak tailor.

Garak hung in the chains for an extended moment, his flesh burning and  
his throat raw from his unuttered screams. At the sound of Dukat's  
voice, Kira allowed the whip to fall upon the cold floor and woodenly  
walked toward the seated Cardassian as if to await further instruction.

"Garak!" Bashir called out raggedly, "Garak, are you all right?"

Forcing a small weak smile upon his bitten and torn lips, Garak chuckled  
hoarsely, "Absolutely doctor, in fact this whole scenario brings back  
some rather *kaff* pleasant memories." He lifted his head and forced  
back the sudden rush of pain induced tears, "Of course, I was on the  
other end of the whip at the time."

Dukat grinned, placing his glass upon a small table beside his chair.  
"The one thing I always admired about you Garak was your positive  
outlook in even the most trying circumstances. Well put!"

"One does try," Garak commented sarcastically before falling into a  
coughing fit.

Bashir began to pull against his chains once more. "Damn you, Dukat! He  
needs medical attention--release me!"

Dukat rolled his eyes as Kira dropped to her knees and laid her head  
upon his thigh. As if stoking a cat, he absently began to run his hand  
over her hair and spoke to her in a pleasant if odd tone, "Are you  
enjoying yourself my darling? Would you like to play with the doctor  
next, Nerys?"

Kira remained silent as she leaned into his caresses, her own hands  
busily massaging his inner thighs as her breath came in quick excited  
gasps.

"Oh yes, you are enjoying yourself, aren't you?" His voice now held a  
singsong quality to it. "Pretty little Nerys. Pretty, pretty girl."

"I don't mind dying, Dukat," Garak croaked out, "but spare us the side  
show if you would."

Dukat's mouth quirked up slightly as he flicked his eyes briefly toward  
Garak, still running long greyish fingers through Kira's short auburn  
hair. "You never did appreciate women, did you Elim?" He stroked her  
face, smiling as her mouth opened and suckled at his fingertips, "Their  
beauty, their softness...no, you never did. You didn't even appreciate my  
daughter's beauty, did you? You merely used Ziyal then destroyed her."

"I...cared deeply for Ziyal," Garak protested weakly.

"You never cared about anyone or anything in your entire life, Garak.  
You are a monster." His smiled and kissed Kira lightly upon her lips,  
still speaking to Garak as he nibbled gently at a purring Kira's ear, "A  
murdering sociopath, that's what you are and always have been. I'm going  
to enjoy killing you slowly."

"What are you?" Bashir retorted his face livid. "You're not only a  
murdering bastard but a rapist! You had to drug Kira so that she would  
allow you to touch her!" He spat out the words venomously, "You didn't  
give a damn about Ziyal! If you did you wouldn't have drugged the woman  
she loved like a sister then treated her like a common whore!"

Dukat arose with a catlike grace and crossed to room to deliver a  
powerful blow across Bashir's mouth with the back of his hand. Blood  
sprayed from the physician's much abused mouth as he grunted in pain  
from both the sudden strike and the wrenching his arms took as they  
twisted in the chains that bound him to the wall. Dukat cocked his head  
to the side in a bird-like gesture and grinned at the gasping human.  
"You always have to meddle in matters that don't concern you, don't you  
Dr. Bashir?" He bent slightly at the waist and looked directly into the  
other man's eyes, "That's a very dangerous habit."

Dukat turned and gestured to Kira who followed him out of the room  
silently. "Clean them up then put them back in the 'guest quarters',"  
Dukat ordered the two dark clothed humans guarding the entrance to the  
chamber. This time though, as the hypospray hissed against his neck,  
Bashir was grateful for the oblivion it brought. Garak was unconscious  
before they reached for him.

~*~

Garak awoke to the unpleasant sensation of cold water being thrown in  
his face. Unwittingly, he inhaled what felt like an enormous amount of  
the salty cold liquid and choked as it burned his nostrils, nearly  
strangling him. As the second torrent came, he held his breath then  
gasped as the salt hit the still fresh wounds of his back. He shook with  
cold and numbly recognised the sound of the doctor's voice as he  
muttered obscenities and choked upon the foul water. Their guards then  
left them cold and shivering alone in their cell, again without so much  
as a word.

"Th-these g-gentlemen are qu-quite the conver-versationalists,  
w-wouldn't you agree, d-doctor?" Garak attempted to smile despite his  
chattering teeth.

"I-I d-don't find this at all amusing, G-Garak," the human replied  
through tight blue-tinged lips.

"Me n-neither, truth b-be told."

Unexpectedly, Julian let out a sharp bark of laughter. "I think that's  
the second honest thing you've said to me, Garak."

Garak controlled his shivering long enough to mutter, "Oh, I've told you  
the truth many times before, y-you just never noticed."

The other man sighed and rolled his neck attempting to make himself more  
comfortable while trying to get his shivering under control. "I don't  
want to fight with you, Garak. I have too many things to worry about  
right now to get into another debate." Julian shuddered and drew his  
arms as close as the chains would allow. "In case you hadn't noticed  
we're not in the replimat."

"I wish we were," Garak shuffled his chained legs and feet, "Even badly  
replicated food and contrived romantic prose would be better than this."

"I'm so hungry I could even manage a plate of rabid gagh!"

"I don't know if I'm quite that hungry yet, doctor." Garak winced and  
stopped for a moment before again shuffling and stomping his feet for  
warmth.

Julian looked at the pale complexion of his companion in concern; "We  
have to get out of here. If we stay much longer Dukat's either going to  
torture us to death or we'll die from exposure."

"An excellent suggestion, doctor. Now, how exactly were you planning on  
freeing us?"

"I don't know yet, Garak! Frankly though, I'm half tempted to leave you  
chained to Dukat's wall for getting me into this mess--sorry, yet another  
mess!"

Garak smiled at the biting sarcasm in the doctor's rant, "That's much  
better. I think I prefer you in our adversarial lunch mode to this  
posture of a condemned prisoner you've been taking on."

"Why? Because you enjoy pissing me off?" Bashir scowled as he tried the  
locks on his chains.

"No, because I know that when we're in a debate you enjoy nothing more  
than proving me wrong and right now I'm fairly certain we aren't getting  
out of this alive."

"In case I didn't mention it or make it clear to you before, this new  
policy of telling the truth was a very bad idea. I do believe I'd much  
rather have the lies, thank you."

"You're both so entertaining!"

Both men fell silent as Dukat strolled into the room with Kira and the  
two guards at their side. The ever-silent human attendants stopped and  
stood at on either side of the door watching them all with professional  
detachment. Kira and Dukat both wore long cloaks of scarlet that were  
embroidered richly in some sort of gold thread. The overdone costumes  
and stiffly regal pose the other Cardassian had assumed spoke volumes  
about just how forgone his sanity truly was.  
Garak gave a mocking nod; "I'm pleased that we could offer you some  
enjoyment through our discomfort, Dukat."

"Oh yes, believe me you have most certainly made my life far more  
enjoyable in the last day or so." He smiled at Garak with glittering  
malice, "I only wish I could keep you alive longer. Truly, my old  
friend, though you may have been a proverbial thorn in my side for more  
years than I can count at least you have made them interesting."

Bashir grimaced and made a small sound of disgust as he watched Dukat  
slither toward his companion.

"You have something to say, Doctor?" Dukat asked expectantly.

The smooth faced human's expression could be likened to granite,  
"Actually, yes."

Dukat waited for an exaggerated moment before shrugging, "Well?"

Julian turned toward Garak, "If we live through this, I never want to  
hear you complain about how overdone Earth literature is again. I feel  
as though I'm trapped in a badly rendered Cardassian melodrama!"

Dukat began to laugh uproariously as great rolling tears of mirth wet  
his cheeks and the stone walls amplified the sound. Kira tittered  
drunkenly in chorus while Garak and Bashir both looked on grimly.

"Such wit, doctor! Such bravado even when faced with your inevitable  
death!" He grinned and leaned in closer, "I'll miss that about you."

"I hear a lot of talk, but have yet to see much action on your part,"  
Garak responded with insulting calmness, "A beating and some cold water  
and we're supposed to beg for mercy? Forgive me, but you really must be  
mad if you think that either myself or the good doctor could be so  
easily defeated."

"Oh, but you have been defeated, my good man." Dukat chuckled as he  
rounded the pair, examining their chains as he passed; "Captured,  
chained, and defeated...you just haven't quite accepted it yet." Garak  
snorted derisively but Dukat continued, "You're right though, I'm not  
done playing with you yet. I have other ideas about how to make the rest  
of your brief lives interesting."

"Oh joy." Bashir's response was heavy with sarcasm.

"Actually, you may enjoy the next stage of our little...how did you put  
it? Our 'melodrama'?" Dukat smiled slyly, "In fact, I'm counting on it."

The human gave his tormentor a scathing look, "I'm sure you are. You do  
realise that as soon as Captain Sisko realises that Garak and I are  
missing he'll send out a search party?"

"And won't that be fun!" Dukat nodded with a laugh as another set of  
guards entered the room with what appeared to be a throne and a small  
black case. Dukat fell bonelessly into the large ornate chair and  
casually draped one leg over the arm as the two new guards left only to  
be replaced by an elderly manservant in formal clothing wheeling a large  
food laden cart, "Oh good. Lunch!"

Dukat examined the various dishes before turning again to his captives,  
"I do hope you don't mind me eating in front of you." He allowed the  
servant to pour him a glass of fruit juice and then held it up in mock  
salute. "If it's of any comfort, I don't believe you'll really have time  
to notice, isn't that right Kira darling?"

Kira fell to her knees and began to crawl on all fours toward Dukat  
while making deep-throated animalistic sounds. She ran her hands over  
his taut thighs and licked his hand as a lapdog would.

"Stand up, my dear. It's time to play with our little friends now."

Kira stood slowly and obediently turned toward the two captive men. She  
walked toward the wall, her steps even and graceful despite her drugged  
state. As she touched a panel on the stone wall, Garak and Julian's arms  
were suddenly wrenched tight as their chains were pulled upward giving  
them no slack in which to manoeuvre.

Both men hissed in sudden pain as Kira smiled and walked toward her  
'master'.

"Now the bag." He instructed her as he ate his dinner with a profane  
casualness.

The Bajoran woman then picked up the bag and placed it before the two  
moaning captives. She then straightened her back and then slowly began  
to peel the robe away revealing a thin tight leather body casing--so thin  
that her proud nipples were clearly defined beneath it.

Dukat nodded silently to the human servant who then chose a large,  
ornate knife from the tray before approaching Kira and handing it to her  
with a polite flourish.

"Madam." He nodded politely as she took the proffered weapon then  
resumed his place beside Dukat.

Kira looked at the gleaming blade for a long moment before finally  
speaking in an eerie, almost childlike voice. "Cardie scum..."

Slowly she approached Garak who watched her in a stoic silence; her face  
almost rapturous as she rubbed the cold flat of the blade against her  
hard nipples and down her smooth, leather encased stomach. "Kill the  
Cardie bastards dead. Stab them, hurt them..."

"Kira." Bashir's voice was small and raspy as he watched her deadly  
progress toward the chained Cardassian. "Nerys...put down the knife,  
Nerys."

With the sharp blade she carefully traced the ridges of Garak's face,  
barely allowing the knife's edge to make contact. "Stab you with my  
shiny blade..." She suddenly stabbed downward causing Garak to tense in  
sudden fear and Julian to gasp in shock. "Let you feel my hate."

She smiled at his reaction as she slowly cut his clothing away from his  
tense body, the tip of the weapon lightly scraping the delicate scaled  
flesh of his chest leaving thin bloody streaks in it's path. When she  
had cut open his tunic and trousers, she stood up placing the knife  
between her strong, whit e teeth and running her hands across his  
shoulders slicing the material as it bunched at his chained wrists then  
again down his torso toward his thighs. She brushed away the fabric  
which was already left in tatters from his previous beating and peeled  
the bloody rag away from his back causing it to fall to the floor as he  
hissed with the reopening of several deep lacerations. She smiled as she  
revealed his silken shorts then fell to her knees, holding the blade in  
one hand as the other caressed and stroked his penis through the thin  
material. Garak gritted his teeth to prevent himself from betraying his  
panic as she ran the sharp edge over his crotch and then inserted it  
between the elastic and his genitals.

From his chained position, Bashir squirmed in sympathetic reaction as  
Dukat chuckled sinisterly. "Terrifying, isn't it doctor?" he laughed and  
Bashir swallowed convulsively.

"You're one sick fuck, Dukat." The human muttered.

"Ah ah ah! Remember doctor, you're next." He turned toward the  
manservant who was now refilling his glass as though they were the only  
two people in the room and nothing untoward was happening, "Tell me,  
Adams, don't you humans have some sort of traditional surgical procedure  
involving the mutilation of the penis?" Without waiting for the man's  
response he nodded to Bashir congenially, "Circumcision, I believe."

Garak held his breath as Kira cut away his underwear, exposing him  
totally. With a gleaming smile she moved away from him and then turned  
toward her other victim, who looked at her in growing dread. Garak's  
eyes followed her in distrust even as she moved away from him and toward  
Bashir. As she stopped in front of the doctor, she made a show of  
twisting the blade so that it shimmered and reflected the light  
prettily.

"YAH!!!" Suddenly she lunged, the knife slicing the cloth on his chest  
and breaking the surface of the skin causing the human to hiss in pain.  
Dropping the knife to the floor, she grabbed the ragged material and  
ripped it away from his body with a snarl, biting the exposed nipples on  
his chest with a growl.

"Arrgh!" He gasped and attempted to kick her away but she suddenly and  
cruelly balled up her fist and punched him in the crotch causing him to  
scream in pain before attempting instinctively to draw up his legs to  
protect himself.

As he gagged and heaved noisily, she again reached for the knife and cut  
through his pants and boots. Her fingernails dug into the flesh above  
his taut buttocks and scraped them downward making him hiss in reaction.  
She removed his clothing grinning with deliberate cruelty as she bared  
his tanned flesh that was now streaked with bloody scratches both from  
his previous encounters with Dukat's henchmen and Kira's own  
ministrations.

When both men were totally nude, Kira turned to the seated Cardassian  
who was leisurely sipping his soup from a heavy silver spoon. He nodded  
silently at her unspoken request then put down the spoon to sip at the  
juice again. Kira cocked her head, smiled at both men with an innocent  
grin, and then pulled out a matching pair of connecting metal rings in  
various sizes.

As she again approached Garak, he chose to kick at her landing a hard  
blow to her stomach as she began to bend down. The guards reacted  
swiftly and with decisive action. From his side, one of the guards  
produced a pain stick and quickly jabbed Garak on his tender and abused  
back. He screamed as electricity tore through his body causing the  
muscles of his chest and arms to knot and spasm uncontrollably while the  
other aided Kira to her feet once more. Dukat's attendant stepped away  
from him and opened the door, whispering to someone in low tones on the  
other side. The other two guards then entered the room once more and  
aided their co-workers in placing manacles around the two struggling  
men's ankles.

Bashir spat out vile profanities as his feet were secured roughly while  
Garak merely shuddered and gasped as the last of the shocks wound their  
way down his spinal cord before shooting back upwards into his skull.  
Instinctively, he kicked out with his legs but he was easily subdued and  
the [rings](http://www.stockroom.com/common/images/products/J609/J609.jpg) were attached around the base of his limp [phallus](http://rabbitvibrators.net/site_images/product/detail/ck089-01.jpg) and  
testicles all the way up to the crown of his shaft. Bashir was harder to  
control, but after a few blows were landed to his solar plexus he, too,  
wore both the leg irons and the odd metallic cock rings.

With a snap of his fingers, the older servant dismissed to two exterior  
guards while the remaining ones slipped again into the background to  
await further orders. Dukat pushed away his empty dinner plate that was  
replaced quickly with some sort of confection. He took an appreciative  
bite. "Mmm, Adams. You've outdone yourself."

"Thank you, sir." The man bowed from his waist formally, his voice still  
calm and polite despite the odd and perverse scene unfolding before  
them.

Kira stared ahead dumbly and Dukat, as though finally remembering them,  
addressed her once more. "Tell your guests about their new toys, my  
dear."

Kira began to speak again but in a low monotone this time which was  
almost as terrifying in it's quiet intensity as the perverted schoolroom  
rhyme, "Seven gates of hell. To hell with them!"

"Explain what they're for Nerys." Dukat didn't even bother to look up as  
he continued to enjoy his meal, barely listening to her mad chatter.

"Cardie spoon head pieces of shit! Cock sucking bastards, all of them!"

Dukat finally looked at her in annoyance, putting down his fork with a  
small, irritated clatter, "The rings, not our guests, Nerys."

"Make them huuuuuurt..." She moaned ecstatically.

Dukat motioned impatiently for the food cart to be removed as he  
addressed her again, "How will they hurt?"

She tittered drunkenly and approached the seated Cardassian. When she  
neared him, she positioned herself between his thighs and then slowly  
sank to her knees. "Hurt goooood...."

Garak cleared his throat painfully then rasped out, "Remind me to repay  
the Colonel for this if we do survive."

"It's not her fault," Bashir squirmed to relieve the ache in his balls  
from the savage blow dealt only a few minutes earlier, "it's that son of  
a bitch, Dukat, that's to blame for all this."

"Still, you'll forgive me if I leave a pin or three in her next formal,  
won't you?" Sweat dripped off the Cardassian's brow and he breathed in  
and out heavily. He was obviously exhausted, Bashir mentally noted, but  
then again he, too, felt as though he had run a marathon. Every muscle  
in his body ached with tension as he steeled himself for the next act in  
Dukat's bizarre little play.

"Leave four." Bashir looked at Kira as she smiled with a malevolence he  
had only seen one other time and that was in the face of the woman known  
as the Intendant, her mirror self from another universe they had visited  
a few years earlier. At the time, their theory had been that those  
people were their opposites but now he began to wonder if they were  
actually what each of them could become given the right circumstances.  
Logically, he knew she was incapable of stopping herself from carrying  
out Dukat's orders, but that made her no less deadly and if they did  
live through all this he'd probably never be able to look at her the  
same way again.

Dukat gazed deeply into his 'love's' eyes and smiled. "Dance for your  
friends now, my dear."

Kira rose to her feet and began to roll her hips to some music that  
played only in her own mind. As she threw back her head, rolling her  
neck sensuously, her small hands pushed and kneaded her firm breasts  
together causing a delightful friction against her nipples. She then  
moved her hands downward and caressed the muscles of her abdomen then  
even lower still to her crotch where she masturbated herself slowly  
through the micro-thin brown leather suit.

"Dance for the spoonhead and his collaborator."

Slowly, she lowered her body to the ground then flipped over suddenly,  
her ass high in the air and her thighs wide spread as she continued to  
pleasure herself. Her cheek touched the ground and she breathed heavily,  
her mouth wide open and moist.

"Paaaaaiiiiiinnn...." She moaned with smiling euphorically.

Dukat was now fully alert, his eyes riveted to the Bajoran woman. He  
rose from his throne and approached her with a hungering gaze. Kira smiled  
and laughed breathlessly upon his approach. She stopped pleasuring  
herself and began to lick at the top of his soft leather boots then  
parted his robe so that she could kiss his cloth covered inner thighs.  
Dukat breathed heavily, looking down at her as she manipulated his  
crotch, chewing and rubbing him through his trousers. Roughly he grabbed  
her arms and pulled her up as though to kiss her but she moved her face  
away and began to rub at his chest then slid her own body against his.  
She turned and rubbed her pert backside against his cock and Dukat  
gripped her slight hips with his large grey hands and began to pump at  
her through their clothes.

Bashir groaned pitifully as his penis grew hard despite the disgust he  
felt at seeing Kira publicly humiliated, the metal rings clamping down  
upon his rigid member with no little amount of pain. Garak, who had  
managed to control his own ardour up to this point, felt himself stiffen  
and grow as the doctor cried out softly, his eyes irresistibly drawn to  
the other man's now fully erect and trapped penis.


	4. "It's going to be one of those days."

Dukat had turned Kira so that she faced him and began to kiss his way  
toward the apex of her thighs. He licked and sucked at her through the  
leather and used his long tongue to seek out and manipulate her erect  
clit. Blindly, he groped for the small black bag then dug around in it,  
his face never leaving the moaning woman's leather encased cunt. With a  
groan of triumph he pulled out a silvery phallic shaped instrument and  
began to rub in up and down the crease of her well-shaped ass. It began  
to hum and vibrate and small shocks of electricity erupted from the head  
of the device and caused her to shudder and gasp with orgasmic pleasure.

Both men were now in pain. Bashir shut his eyes tight but the moans and  
gasps of the lovers could not be ignored. Tears welled up on Garak's  
eyes as he bucked hopelessly against the confining torture device and he  
tried to think of anything but the scent of pheromones and sounds of  
sexual tension filling the room. His well-trained eyes began to dart  
across his prison cell, looking for any weaknesses or breaches in  
security that could offer them an escape route after Dukat and Kira left  
them once more. It was as his eyes drifted over the embracing couple  
that he saw something that made him smile slightly despite his  
discomfort.

"They must have you on some heavy medications, Dukat." His voice was  
raspy but triumphant, "I understand that anti-psychotics sometimes have  
those type of side effects."

Bashir's head lolled forward as he looked through sweaty lashes toward  
the man Garak was addressing, "Wha--" It was then that he understood.

Despite Kira's heavy-handed stroking, Dukat's penis was completely  
flaccid under the tight breeches he wore. "He's impotent." The stress of  
all they'd been through combined with the peculiar turn of events made  
Bashir forget for a moment his physician's oath to be a merciful  
professional and instead snicker breathlessly.

"Is that why you chose this particular torture technique Dukat? You  
wanted to see how real men looked?" As Garak laughed triumphantly,  
Dukat's face suddenly paled as though he had been struck. With a roar,  
he threw himself at the two chained men and began to punch Garak over  
and over as Bashir yelled and rattled the shackles in an attempt to draw  
the attack away from his friend.

As Garak choked and then fell unconscious under the heavy blows, Dukat  
then turned on Bashir and struck him hard on the temple with his balled  
up fist. It was the last thing he would see for quite some time.

 

Present...

 

Sisko grimaced as he looked into the comm screen, "What do you mean he  
never showed up? He left here two days ago!"

The Andorian man straightened the collar of his medical uniform  
uncomfortably. "I'm sorry Captain, but he never showed up. We knew you  
were under a communications silence a while back so we assumed at first  
that was why he didn't inform us he wouldn't be able to present his  
paper to the committee. As soon as we informed Admiral James of this  
though, he corrected our assumption and ordered me to comm you  
immediately."

"Thank you for your concern." Sisko said irritably, rubbing a sudden  
ache in his neck.

"I, and the rest of the doctors here, hope he will turn up safe and  
sound." The Andorian's antennas bobbed up and down as he nodded his head  
sympathetically.

"Thank you doctor. Sisko out." As the screen flashed back to dark, Sisko  
tapped his badge. "Sisko to O'Brien."

//O'Brien here, sir.//

"Has Mr Garak checked in yet?" He asked.

//Aye sir. Apparently, his hotel was still having comm problems but he  
did send a voice transmission. It's on your console now.//

Sisko hit the panel and immediately the static laden voice of the tailor  
emerged. "S-*crackle*-y ab*fizt*out the transmission being *zzzt* -ut  
the hotel is experiencing technical ---ifficulties. This is ---arak  
signing in."

The Captain gazed down at his desk console for a long moment before  
hitting the viewscreen controls. Immediately, the face of the hotel  
manager came into view.

"Emissary! Hello...I was just about to contact you."

Sisko tented his fingers and looked into the console gravely, "Indeed? I  
take it that this would mean the problems with your communications  
system have been solved?"

"Our...oh! You mean from the day before!" He chuckled a bit self  
consciously before continuing, "Oh yes, they've been fixed for a while."

"Then why has Mr Garak been reporting problems concerning the  
transmissions he's made?" The dark skinned man asked with a raised brow.

The Bajoran man shook his head in confusion, "I-I'm not sure, Emissary.  
Mr Garak's comm unit is in perfect working order. I'm afraid not  
everything else may be, but..."

"I'm not quite sure I follow you."

"Well, Emissary," the man slipped a finger under his collar as if to  
loosen it, "that was why I was about to call you."

"Continue." Sisko's face remained calm. For some reason, he suspected he  
knew what the hotel manager was going to say.

"I'm afraid Mr Garak's bill is growing quite large." He cleared his  
throat nervously, "We understand that he is a personal friend of yours  
so the hotel has made some special allowances, however our plumbing is  
quite old--pre-occupation, in fact--and certainly not built for flushing  
mud down the bath drain and whatnot. Speaking of which, the mud in  
question was not inexpensive and he charged it to..."

"Mud?" Sisko asked, wincing slightly as the pain in his temples grew  
rapidly.

"Yes sir." The man gave a sad nod, "Also, this is a conservative  
establishment, many of our guests have families or are older. Given Mr  
Garak's unusual appearance, we were prepared to bend some policies, but  
the women..."

"Women?" Now Sisko knew something was definitely off centre.

"Oh yes, Mr Garak is quite the ladies man! He's been....cavorting with the  
less respectable ladies of the township since the first hour he's been a  
guest here. Many of the other patrons are outraged." He took a deep  
breath. "Also, you should know his bar tab has grown most excessive. I  
don't mean to suggest that your friend has a drinking problem but..."

"Patch me through to Mr Garak's quarters immediately!" Sisko barked his  
patience at an end.

The man at the other side of the screen jumped, "B-but Mr Garak asked  
that he not..."

"As the Emissary to the Prophets, I am requesting that you put me  
through to Mr Garak's room immediately." He ordered his eyes dark with  
irritation.

"Yes, Emissary." The manager reluctantly hit a button and Sisko could  
see the darkened interior of Garak's quarters. From the right, a  
half-naked Bajoran woman ran laughing across the screen. A second later  
a large lumbering figure entered the view space.

"Mr Morn."

Morn stopped short and looked at Sisko with small beady eyes, which were  
filled with the knowledge that his free ride was done. Slowly, he  
shrugged.

"Stay right where you are!" Sisko commanded, "I'm having the Bajoran  
land police hold you under house arrest until you can be escorted back  
to the station."

Most people would probably run when simply told they were under arrest,  
but this was Morn. Morn rarely ran anywhere if there was a barstool  
within sitting distance so Sisko wasn't worried that he'd try to escape.  
He was however worried about the doctor and their wayward Cardassian.

He gave him a hard look, "Is Mr Garak with you?"

Morn shook his head slowly.

"Of course he isn't. Sisko out!"

He slammed his fist on the desk angrily, "I knew it! 'But Benjamin, he  
needs a vacation' my ass. Sisko to Odo." As irritating and untrustworthy  
as the Cardassian was, they couldn't afford to lose him quite yet. If he  
ever did get him back on the station though, claustrophobic or not, the  
man was going to be locked in holding until he collected his retirement  
benefits.

//Odo here Captain.//

"Send two guards down to the Hotel D'Sarma to take Mr Morn into  
custody."

//Morn?// Odo's voice was gritty with agitation; //I should have known  
things were getting too quiet around here.//

"As soon as he is back on ship I want him brought to my office for  
immediate questioning concerning the whereabouts of Mr Garak and Dr.  
Bashir."

//Right away, sir. Odo out.//

Sisko sighed and rubbed his forehead; "It's going to be one of those  
days."


	5. "War is hell."

~*~

Bashir moaned and opened one eye; the only one not swollen shut, and  
looked over to his companion who was attempting to reach for his leg  
shackles.

"Figure out a way to pick the lock?" he mumbled, his voice raspy from  
their shared ordeal.

"Afraid not, doctor. Actually," he grunted as he finally reached the  
muscle, "ugh, I'm just trying to work out this cramp."

"One must have one's priorities in order."

"Humour is not your strong suit." Garak said irritably, as he rubbed his  
leg.

Julian grimaced and bumped the back of his head against the cold stone,  
"I have to relieve myself."

"Pardon?" Garak looked up with a frown.

"I have to take a piss." Julian stretched his back and fidgeted  
uncomfortably. "I don't know about you but my kidneys are close to  
bursting."

Garak cleared his throat and averted his eyes from Julian's semi-erect  
state, which evidenced his need to urinate, "So go."

"And sit in my own urine for gods know how long?" He snorted derisively,  
"Right."

"Guard!" Garak called out. "Guard! We need assistance!"

A camera came down from the wall and pointed its lens in Garak's face as  
a voice came over a hidden speaker.

//What do you need?//

Smart, Garak thought to himself. The whole room must be wired with  
observational equipment. This would make it infinitely harder for them  
to escape but he had to admire their thoroughness. "We require water and  
food as well as sanitary facilities."

There was a long pause and Bashir took the opportunity to speak up,  
"We've been here for ages! If Dukat wants us dead then just do it,  
otherwise at least have the common decency to let us take a leak."

"Leak?" Garak asked, he attention re-routed to the doctor.

"Slang term for urination."

"Oh." Garak nodded. "Most appropriate."

"We try."

"Okay." The guard said before the door again opened and three men  
entered. Two stood sentry, phaser rods in hand, as the third, unarmed,  
approached Julian. Quickly, he placed a shackle on both of his wrists  
before undoing the manacles attached to the wall. Then he released the  
leg clamps, placed a bucket near his feet and backed up. Julian grunted  
in relief as his arms came down then unsteadily rose to his feet. As he  
gained his balance he quickly reached between his legs and aimed for the  
metal pail. Garak turned away, allowing him some amount of privacy and  
did not turn around again until the splashing of liquid ceased. Instead  
he allowed himself to note that whomever these men were, this was not  
the first time they had guarded over prisoners. The man who was now  
serving them had no weapon to steal and took the proper precautions so  
as not to be placed in the position of becoming a hostage to his own  
charges. Perhaps, if he did live, he'd seek retirement out here. He  
might even start his own private version of the OO.

"Back to the wall, hands up." The guard ordered briskly.

Bashir knelt back down stiffly and raised his arms. "Do we get food as  
well?"

"Mr Dukat will have to make that decision, sir." The dark-haired human  
replied with cool professionalism as he again shackled the other man to  
the wall.

"Now you." The guard's eyes flashed intelligently. "Try anything and  
we'll put you down, understood?"

Garak nodded meekly and the man repeated the process of shackling and  
unshackling him. Briefly, he considered taking the opportunity to attack  
the guard, but he quickly decided against it. He probably could gain  
some temporary advantage even though he was still in chains. Only three  
human guards were present, but there were at least five or six others  
unaccounted for and who were undoubtedly expecting that very thing.  
Instead he, too, took the opportunity to relieve himself; shivers of  
pleasure running down his spine as he released what had been pent up for  
so long. As he opened his eyes he caught the doctor's gaze upon him.  
Bashir then coughed in embarrassment at being found out and turned his  
head. The guard shifted impatiently beside him and Garak shook the  
remaining droplets from his foreskin before also returning to his corner  
to be reshackled.

"That it?" the guard asked as he stepped back cautiously.

"Water would be nice not to mention a hot meal." Garak requested,  
repeating the earlier suggestion made by the human beside him.

"Take it up with Dukat." The guard replied once again, "All he said was  
you could take a shit or a piss, that's it."

"In that case, thank you. That will be all." Garak replied dismissively.

The guard glared slightly at the regal tone Garak afforded him, but  
remained silent as he took the bucket to the far corner and poured it  
down a drain in the floor before joining his companions at the door.

As they left, Julian coughed again before looking up at his shackled  
wrists; "I would at least have liked to wash my hands."

"I'm afraid we'll just have to cope without hygiene for the moment."  
Garak replied, shutting his eyes in repose.

"No food, no water, pissing in a bucket." Julian scowled. "War is hell."

"Indeed."

~*~

Sisko gave the alien sitting across from his desk a dirty look, "That's  
it?"

Morn nodded meekly.

"You mean he just offered you a free vacation to Bajor and you took it,  
no questions asked?" He snorted, "What am I saying? Of course you did.  
You never even suspected something was wrong when he told you that you  
had to be checked in under his name and send in these recorded  
transmissions?" he tossed a small isolinear rod on the desk angrily.

Morn gave a reluctant shrug in response.

"Get out of my office," Sisko ordered, "I'm remanding you to Constable  
Odo's custody so that you may be placed under house arrest until such  
time as you can be brought up on charges of conspiracy to defraud.  
Dismissed!"

Morn got up slowly and walked past Odo toward the two Bajoran guards  
standing just outside the glass panelled door.

"Morn!" The lumbering alien turned back toward the dark faced captain in  
trepidation. "By house arrest I mean your quarters, not Quark's bar.  
Take even one step toward the Promenade and I'll have security set their  
phasers on shoot to kill."

Morn gave a sad groan before walking out the door.

"Morn?" Ezri looked at the alien in concern as he passed her on his way  
out. As she entered the office she frowned at both Odo and Sisko in  
concern. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's under arrest." Odo grumbled, crossing his arms over his narrow  
chest.

"Why?" She asked looking from one man to the other.

"Because your dear friend, Mr Garak, apparently decided to kidnap my  
shuttlecraft along with Dr. Bashir." Sisko stated caustically.

"Why would he do that?" She replied incredulously.

"Excellent question." Sisko picked up a baseball on his desk and  
squeezed it before palming it agitatedly from hand to hand.

"Perhaps Garak is still working for the Obsidian Order after all." Odo  
suggested.

"Why take Dr. Bashir then? He's of no strategic value." Ezri countered.

"Perhaps he just got in the way."

"I don't think so." Sisko replied as he continued to toss the white ball  
from one hand to the other. "There's something, some other motive at  
work here." He arose from his chair and placed the ball back in its  
holder. Turning to gaze at the starscape behind him, he again began to  
speak. "What set him off?"

Ezri and Odo exchanged glances in silence before Sisko again turned to  
face them. "We're missing something here."

"I didn't find anything in his data PADD or his quarters, not that I  
really expected to." The changeling's tone grew even more caustic than  
usual.

"You've been his councillor for a while now..." Sisko turned to the young  
Trill expectantly.

"I'm not about to violate doctor/patient privilege, Benjamin!"

"I'm not asking you to. All I want is some insight into what would  
motivate him to take off like this."

"I honestly don't have a clue." Dax said, "One second he was fine if a  
bit bored, the next he was coming to my office requesting a vacation."

//O'Brien to Sisko//

"Yes, Chief?"

The red blond engineer looked over an ensign's shoulder as the lights  
from the monitor emphasised his lined features. "We have the flight  
pattern on the runabout, Captain. Near as we can tell he was headed  
toward Orion space."

//Thank you Chief. Inform me if Dr. Bashir tries to make contact.//

"Of course, sir." The Chief replied before addressing the ensign whose  
monitor he was sharing. "Start scanning for any possible coded  
transmissions coming from the Orion sector."

"But Chief..." The blue faced ensign turned to him, "that sector has tons  
of communications activity--most of it coded! It would take a miracle..."

"Then a miracle is what I'm asking for." The Irishman rejoined, "Just do  
it, Ensign."

"Aye, Chief." She sighed before muttering under-breath, "I'll bet you  
Uhura never had to put up with this crap."

"Why would Garak go to Orion space?" Sisko's self-questioning tone  
matched that of his unseen Bolean officer.

"Maybe he decided to give up on returning to Cardassia?" Ezri suggested,  
"The Orion syndicate is always looking for freelance assassins,  
especially ones with Garak's experience."

"Half of whom are already gunning for Garak anyway." Sisko snorted, "No,  
it doesn't make sense."

Sisko looked up and noticed his security chief's expression that had  
become somewhat troubled. "Constable?"

"Yes, Captain?"

"What aren't you telling me?" The black man approached the shapeshifter  
curiously.

Odo cleared his non-existent throat, "I'm afraid that I'm not at liberty  
to say, sir."

"Not at...have you lost your senses, Constable?" The captain returned  
angrily. "If you have any information pertaining to the disappearance of  
one of my senior officers then you'd better damn well say something  
now!"

"It..." He hesitated. "It has to do with Nerys."

"I'm listening." Both Sisko and Dax leaned in closer.

"She wouldn't tell me everything, but she was headed toward that part of  
the quadrant." Odo appeared contrite at having betrayed the information,  
but his concern for the missing woman was more important now.

"Why, Odo?" Ezri asked before Ben could.

Odo looked up at them both; "All she said was that she had to find  
Dukat."

"And you didn't try to stop her?" Sisko burst out angrily.

"I could hardly force her to stay, sir." Odo glared at him insolently  
although his tone remained at a respectable level.

"Of course not." The other man threw up his arms in disgust. "Have I  
completely lost control over my officers?"

Odo's back stiffened in offence, "I did try to convince her to come to  
you, Captain, but she said it was personal and had nothing to do with  
the war effort."

"And how is it she came to that ill advised conclusion?" He asked  
sarcastically, "How could her one woman mission to find the former  
leader of Cardassia--who, by the way, just happens to be a Federation  
fugitive-- not affect the war effort?"

"She said it was about her family." Odo replied tightly, his eyes  
riveted to the floor.

"And you believed her?" Sisko snorted.

"Yes. I did." The shapeshifter's eyes flashed with uncommon fire as he  
looked at Sisko directly. "When it comes to finding her family, however  
dangerous it may prove to be, not only do I believe her, I sympathise."

Before Sisko could continue his tirade, Dax stepped in between the two  
men. "What family, Odo?"

"I can't say."

"Can't or won't?"

Odo turned to his superior officer, "Can't. She refused to explain. She  
said she didn't want me involved in it."

"Well, you are involved--up to your eye-teeth!" Sisko thundered, "If you  
weren't such a valued officer I'd have you locked in your own brig until  
I could arrange a court-martial with the Bajoran Militia!"

"That's your decision to make, sir."

"Don't tempt me!"

"Odo," Ezri clasped him on his arm lightly, "you knew about this the  
whole time and you didn't say anything even after you found out Garak  
and Julian had disappeared as well?"

"I had no reason to link the two." Odo replied, his expression closed.

"Right." Sisko turned his back on the other man so that he could instead  
glare out of the porthole, "I want you to scan all of Kira's most recent  
data entries and if you find anything I want to know about it.  
Understood?"

"Yes sir." Odo turned and left the office, his normally smooth gait now  
at a brisk cadence betraying his displeasure.

For a long moment Dax and Sisko shared silent company. "When did I lose  
control over my people like this, old man?" He repeated, this time in a  
softer tone.

Ezri shrugged and perched on the edge of his desk. "Well, you never did  
have control over Garak, Benjamin. As for the rest...you can't be the  
surrogate father figure to everyone, you know."

"I don't want to be a 'father figure', Dax! I just want to be left in  
the loop occasionally!"

"No you don't." She smiled sadly, "Maybe it's my fault. As your teacher  
I probably should have kept a more professional distance, but I liked  
you too much. Curzon never did understand about boundaries. It installed  
in you the need to mentor your crew."

"What's so wrong with that?" he defended, suddenly feeling like a young  
and naive officer again as the girlish voice of his friend suddenly was  
replaced by three centuries and then some of experience putting him off  
balance.

"Nothing. Everything." She reached over and patted his hand. "Ben,  
they're your crew, not your kids. You can't let it hurt your feelings  
when one of them decides to do something without consulting you first."

"This is a little bit more extreme than deciding to marry a Dabo girl  
or getting a tattoo and joining a rock band, Dax!" he snorted.

"True," she agreed, "and when you find her you should reprimand her  
officer to officer for showing such an unprofessional disregard to her  
own safety and this mission. You should not, however, blast her because  
she didn't let you in on her own personal business."

"Message received." He grinned at her ruefully, "Now let's just find  
them so I can vent my 'professional' displeasure to them in person."

"Ooh, they might wish they'd stayed lost!" Dax joked joining his as he  
exited his office.

Sisko's face tightened in concern, "Somehow, I doubt that."


	6. "No need to thank me."

~*~

The dark skinned doctor turned his head away instinctively as the guard  
tossed a handful of clothing at him. Garak, too, shut his eyes as  
clothing was thrown at him. Two guards came in with a large metal tub of  
water as another held his weapon on the chained prisoners, his eyes  
watching them carefully. One of the guards then reached outside the door  
and tossed one of the now infamous black bags toward them, barely  
missing Garak's feet. The doors then slammed shut while at the same time  
the shackles on both their hands and feet snapped open.

Both men rubbed their joints in relief as a voice again sounded over the  
hidden speakers.

//Mr. Dukat requests that you bathe then dress for dinner.//

"It's about time." Julian sighed as he rose stiffly and padded toward  
the tub.

//If you attempt to escape or resist in any way, you will be taken care  
of.//

"Charming." Garak drawled as he also rose to his feet painfully. "I must  
remember this place the next time I go on vacation."

Julian limped toward the tub and splashed some of the hot water on his  
bloody and bruised face. "What's in Dukat's bag of tricks this time?" He  
gasped, coming up for air.

Garak grunted and leaned down to open the bag. He took out a metallic  
object and tossed it to the human who caught it deftly in one hand. "I  
think you can find a use for that, doctor."

"Dermal regenerator." He turned it over in his hand. "I'm sure I could."

"Various toiletries, towels, soap.." he pulled out a roll of paper and  
tossed it to his companion, "You first."

"Thanks." Julian chuckled, "I was regretting not doing that when I had  
the chance an hour ago."

"While you take the facilities," he nodded toward the bucket, "to the  
far corner, I'll clean myself off."

"Save me some hot water." Julian joked as he picked up the pail and  
walked into the shadows.

"I'll try." Garak hissed as he entered the tub feet first and then began  
to scrub at himself as roughly as his broken skin could stand before  
ducking his head under and soaping his black hair into a lather.

"So *grunt*, why do you think Dukat decided to reward us with this bit  
of pampering all of the sudden?" He addressed his cellmate from the  
shadowed corner. "A fit of conscience, perhaps?"

"Ha!" Garak responded as he carefully washed his face, "I don't think  
Dukat has ever had a fit of conscience in his long, miserable life!"

Julian tossed the paper into the bucket then walked toward the tub.  
"Some could say the same about you."

"They'd probably be right, too." Garak agreed as he regretfully got out  
of the tub, water splashing out a bit from his motions as he stepped  
onto the stone floor. "I, however, always allowed my prisoners the use  
of a proper shower and toilet."

Julian tossed him the roll of tissue before stepping into the still hot  
water. "I suppose you were trying to win them over through kindness,  
right?"

"No." Garak said as he squatted in the darkness. "I just didn't want to  
smell them."

Julian sniffed at his own hairy underarms and laughed as he scrubbed  
briskly. "I can understand that. Oh, don't get dressed until after I've  
run that DR unit over you."

"Right." Garak sighed as he walked back toward the bag and dropped the  
remaining tissue back in before grabbing one of the thick towels and  
rubbing himself dry.

Julian watched the Cardassian as he bent over and rubbed the towel over  
his legs. For one suspended moment in time, he allowed himself to take  
in the shape and contours of his friend's thighs and buttocks. He tore  
his gaze away and gave a forced chuckle instead. "Why is it that the  
only time I ever seem to have a real discussion with you man to man,  
we're in prison being tortured?"

"Luck?" Garak supplied dryly.

"I thought you didn't believe in luck." Julian said before diving under  
the water and snorting air through his nose.

Garak waited until he had surfaced before responding. "I don't believe  
in coincidences. I do believe in luck to some extent however. In fact, I  
once prided myself in my ability to cause bad luck for many of my  
unfortunate fellow operatives."

"If it's of any comfort, you're still causing bad luck for some of  
them." Julian threw him a look, "Me for example."

Garak arched his eyeridge as if mulling over Julian's observation. "No,  
my friend, I'm afraid this falls under the category you humans refer to  
as 'karma'. If I was the cause of this then I certainly wouldn't be  
suffering along side you." He smiled apologetically as he fashioned the  
towel around his midsection. "No offence."

"Karma, huh?" Bashir responded, choosing to ignore his apology. "When  
did you develop an interest in Earth religions?"

"I do my research, doctor. It's what made me such an invaluable tool to  
my father all those years."

//You have twenty minutes to complete your preparations.//

"Bloody bastards." Julian grumbled as he got out of the tub and accepted  
the towel Garak handed him. "Hand me the unit and turn around, if you  
don't mind. Those welts on your back need a good going over."

Garak turned obediently as Julian fashioned the towel around his waist,  
mimicking the Cardassian's own makeshift mode of dress. Julian ran the  
instrument over the red and ragged welts, aiding the machine along by  
holding some of the wounds shut with his own fingers.

Garak's breath hissed as the doctor touched him, as much from the sharp  
pain he felt as the seductive human's own cool fingertips over his back.  
Pushing the inappropriate responses his body was suggesting aside, he  
gritted his teeth. "Don't bother with being thorough. I'm fairly certain  
we're in for more of the same treatment."

Julian nodded slightly, "Most likely we will, but I'm not accustomed to  
doing a shoddy job."

Julian then walked to the front of the Cardassian laying one finely  
boned hand on his scaled chest as he ran the dermal regenerator over his  
wounds. Garak remained tense but allowed his exploration to continue  
until the doctor reached down for the towel at his waist. He gripped his  
wrist firmly but gently and spoke in a no-nonsense tone, "That will have  
to do, doctor. Our time is running short and you have your own wounds to  
attend to."

Julian sighed and reluctantly handed him the medical tool. "You're  
right. Here, just concentrate on my face for now please. I think that's  
where I took the most damage." He smiled with swollen lips, "Feels that  
way at any rate."

Garak stepped close to him and began to run the DR over his face,  
pausing at the more damaged areas and allowing the lasers to linger. He  
stepped in even closer; his breath intermingling with Julian's own as he  
peered into the other man's eyes. "The whites of your left eye are  
completely red."

Julian held his breath slightly as he felt the Cardassian's chest brush  
his own. He had the insane urge to take a step closer but quickly  
rejected the notion. It was the close confinement; that was all. He'd  
had similar urges the last time he and Garak were trapped together. He'd  
avoided his company afterward and, sure enough, the feelings had  
dwindled to a point where they were hardly noticeable as long as he  
remained a bit distant. Ridiculous, really. "I probably just burst a  
blood vessel. I can see fine, so I'm not worried about it. It'll have to  
wait until later anyway without the proper equipment." He stepped away  
and picked up some underwear from the floor that looked to be his  
approximate size. "Let's just get dressed."

Garak tossed the scanner into the bag carefully, took a moment to wash  
his hands with the used bath water (it wasn't exactly hygienic but better than not  
washing them at all), then splashed on some of the scent Dukat had provided  
before donning his own clothing. Julian pulled a comb through his thick, curly hair  
then tossed it over to his companion.

"Thank you." Garak replied.

//As soon as you are dressed, raise your hands above and behind your  
head. Make any aggressive movements and all privileges such as meals and  
water will be terminated.//

"Wouldn't want that to happen." Julian muttered as he hopped on one  
foot, pulling on one of the soft boots as provided by their 'host'.

Again, the doors slid open as soon as they had done as was asked and two  
guards approached them with phaser rods, which were similar in both  
design and purpose as Klingon pain sticks. Two more guards focused  
disrupters on them as their colleagues carefully herded them along. The  
two armed guards took point, still levelling their weapons at them as  
they carefully made their way down a long windowless corridor. Bashir  
turned his head to confirm the presence of the other two attendants and  
received a painful jab of the stick for his efforts.

"Urk!" Julian almost lost his balance but Garak quickly caught him and  
helped him regain his footing.

"Hands back up!" The blond guard barked. "Next time I have to use my  
weapon it won't be on low stun, understood?"

"Understood." Garak agreed and Julian nodded as they continued to make  
their way down the hall. When they had finally the end of the passage,  
the door opened revealing yet another set of conservatively dressed  
human attendants, each holding an impressive piece of weaponry. Garak  
noted the fact that they worked in pairs with a great deal of  
professional interest. Truly a classy operation, indeed.

As they entered the large room, Julian and Garak both looked around and  
took in the appearance of the dining area as well as their 'host' who  
was sitting at the head of the long table with Kira at his side. Both  
were dressed attractively, if more than a little over dramatically.  
Again, Dukat had assumed a near regal posture, his clothing slightly  
medieval and done in red and black with gold epaulets. Kira was in a  
figure-hugging gown of blood red velvet, which Garak privately noted  
matched the carpeting a bit to well for the sake of good taste. Equally  
overdone were the furnishings. Heavy gold-gilded chairs with overwrought  
carvings matched the marble and gold table and thick red and gold  
draperies that were shut tight against the sunlight. Actually, the  
whole thing was done in such excess that Garak's eyes began to ache with  
it. It was both obviously expensive and yet reminiscent of the 'evil  
lairs' the villains in Dr. Bashir's holosuite adventures always seemed  
to prefer. "More clichés." He sighed.

"I kind of like it." Julian whispered in return.

"You would." Garak said softly.

"Thank you, Julian. I'm rather fond of it myself." Dukat said in a  
booming voice. "Oh, I may call you Julian?"

"Please." The human nodded with a tight smile-as they were each led to a  
chair and seated. Their guards then stepped back and moved to the far  
walls but remained at a vigilant state of attention.

"Eat!" Dukat said with a broad smile. "Drink up! I assure you the wine  
is of the best vintage."

"Is it poisoned?" Garak inquired with a deceptively light tone.

"Probably." Dukat smiled then took a long draught. "What does it matter?  
You'll be dead soon anyway."

Garak lifted his glass with a salute. "True enough." He took a sip and  
swished it against his palate before swallowing. "Very nice."

"Thank you." Dukat nodded and watched as Bashir took a swallow as well,  
watching the two Cardassian's banter with distrust. "Is it to your  
liking as well, doctor?"

"Actually, as good a vintage as this probably is, I'd prefer some water  
or tea." He put down the stemmed glass. "I'm understandably thirsty and  
wine isn't exactly conducive to relieving dehydration."

"Of course, how thoughtless of me." He rang a small silver bell at his  
side and the butler, Adams, emerged from what Julian assumed was the  
kitchen. "Some water for our guests. Oh, and when you bring out the  
place settings, make sure to cut their meat for them." He nodded with a  
benevolent grin toward the two 'guests' in question. "I don't think  
you're quite ready to be trusted with knives, do you?"

'Probably." Garak rejoined and Dukat laughed heartily.

"Oh Elim! I always did appreciate your wit." He leaned in. "At least the  
half you seemed to be in possession of."

Julian winced at the usage of the pun while Garak merely awarded his  
adversary with a polite nod. "Very clever, sir."

"Sir?" Dukat's eyeridges rose in mock surprise. "Oh this is a miraculous  
turn, isn't it? I do believe we're ready to eat, don't you?"

"Absolutely." Garak agreed.

~*~

The young Bolean officer scowled and pressed the headset closer to her  
ear. "Hey Nog?"

The Ferengi looked up from his own monitoring station toward his  
crewmate. "Yeah?"

"Can you come listen to this for a minute?" She asked, her hairless brow  
wrinkling in frustration. "I'm picking up something, but I can't quite  
catch it."

Chief O'Brien looked over at the two in interest as Nog put on her  
headset. After a moment, the young ensign's eyes opened wide in  
surprise.

"What is it, Nog?" O'Brien asked intently.

"It's..." The Ferengi looked at the communications officer with interest.  
"Where'd you get this?"

"Well," she began, "When I couldn't find anything concrete from the  
scans we made on the Orion sector, I decided to review Mr. Garak's first  
transmission."

"What is it?" The chief repeated gruffly.

"There's a signal underneath the static in the transmission. I can't  
quite..." He reached over and turned the volume all the way up, wincing at  
the feedback but remaining focused. "Yeah, now I hear it. It's...it's in  
some kind of code."

Nog grabbed a PADD from a nearby workstation and began to type in the  
oblique message as quickly as he could. O'Brien frowned as he watched  
the first few symbols come into view then opened his mouth in surprise.  
"Fuck me sideways..." He threw the female officer an apologetic look.  
"Sorry. Nog--I want you and Ensign Jer`i to continue monitoring but on  
this frequency, understood?"

"Yes, chief." The seated officer agreed weakly.

"But what does this mean?" Nog muttered, "Ally, ally, oxen free?"

~*~

"Never thought I'd be so happy to hear that Cardie ba-er-Garak's voice  
in my life, Captain!" O'Brien grinned beatifically.

"Ally, ally, oxen free---well, obviously Mr. Garak and Julian's lunches  
covered more than just Earth literature." Sisko smiled triumphantly.  
"Our Mr. Garak has called off this game of hide and seek, Chief. Let's  
go round up the players, shall we?"

"Yes sir." O'Brien gave a relieved grin. "Now that we know the frequency  
it shouldn't take more than an hour to get a definite bead on their  
homing signal."

"I want a rescue party readied and waiting to take the Rio Grande toward  
their sector." The captain ordered.

"Permission to go along, sir." O'Brien asked.

"Granted." Sisko nodded. "Is Mr.Worf back from his rotation with  
Martok's crew yet?"

"No sir."

"In that case, you'll have the con. Dismissed."

O'Brien headed out the door and back toward an expectant pair of ensigns  
below. "First bit of good news in a week!"

~*~

The heavy atmosphere and rich foods did not sit well with Julian's  
stomach. Apparently, Cardassians were of a far heartier breed because  
Garak seemed to have totally forgotten the past few days not to mention  
the years of hate and distrust he shared with Dukat as he joked and  
discussed the 'old days' with him. Bashir chewed at his food slowly and  
tried to loosen the muscles in his neck and back which had grown stiff  
with tension.

"Remember Gul Nebrek's daughter Lusala?" Dukat laughed uproariously.

Garak winced and smiled politely, "Unfortunately, yes. I almost found  
myself betrothed to her when someone locked us in one of the armament  
lockers at the academy. She nearly raped me!"

Dukat snickered, "And who do you suppose did that?"

Garak flicked his cool gaze toward his 'host'. "You?"

"Right!" Dukat continued to laugh uproariously, not yet noticing that he  
was the only one who appeared the least bit amused by the conversation.  
"I figured she'd finally make a man out of you, Elim!"

"She was already close enough to being one herself." He tilted his head  
politely. "I wouldn't be surprised if the woman wound up married to a  
Klingon."

"Worse. Legate Zennul and she are reportedly expecting their eighth  
child soon." Dukat wiped tears of amusement from the corners of his eyes  
as he continued to gasp for air.

"Zennul?" Garak's mouth quirked upward. "Which one is pregnant?"

"I knew you'd say that!" Dukat saluted as he took a long draught from  
his wineglass.

Dukat glanced over to Kira who was mechanically shoving her food around  
the plate and staring at it sightlessly. "Nerys, darling, is something  
wrong with your dinner."

"No." She answered softly, her expression unchanged.

Dukat shrugged apologetically, "Nerys' medication causes a certain  
amount of attention deficit, I'm afraid. It also causes one to lose  
their appetite."

Garak shook his head politely. "Think nothing of it Dukat."

"No, no! As a good host it is my duty to see that all of my guests are  
kept entertained." He again shook the bell and the manservant came  
forward to take away their plates. "I do believe it's time we started on  
the night's entertainment."

Bashir's mouth tightened into a grim line. "And what precisely is  
tonight's 'entertainment'?"

"Ah doctor! I was afraid you'd fallen asleep listening to us two old men  
reminisce about the old days." He tented his fingers in a casual gesture  
before leaning back into his plush chair. "Actually, I think you'll both  
enjoy tonight's entertainment since you will both be participating in  
it."

"You don't say?" The sarcasm in Bashir's tone was thick.

"I've been watching the monitors and I've come to a most intriguing  
conclusion about you both." He sighed and smiled widely. "I thought, why  
not put my theory to the test while we eat our cake and after dinner  
cognac?"

"Which is?" Garak inquired in an even tone of voice.

"An Earth liqueur. Not as hearty as kanaar but very good." Dukat paused  
at Garak's hardening expression. "Oh, you meant my theory? Oh well, I  
figured out why it is my last game failed so miserably. I already knew  
how your tastes ran, Elim, but I had no reason to suspect your doctor  
until I reviewed the surveillance tapes..."

"Meaning?" Garak's posture grew tense as he focused upon the other man.

"I'm going to have Dr. Bashir -," He turned to the near comatose  
Colonel, "pardon my language, please- fuck you up the ass right here at  
the dinner table." He smiled bemusedly. "No need to thank me."


	7. "Please pass the butter."

"What?!?" Bashir arose from his seat suddenly, his glass overturning  
and spilling darkly on the fine linen tablecloth. The guard nearest him  
came forward and placed his rod at the small of his back releasing a  
small jolt of energy. Julian gasped and gripped the table, his muscles  
spasming as a cold sweat broke out all over his body.

"Oh do sit down, doctor." Dukat ordered in an offended tone. "After  
you're finished we can have our cake, I promise you."

"F-fuck your c-cake, Dukat." Bashir managed as he sunk back down into  
his chair.

"Oh..." Dukat signalled Adams to bring in the desert tray. "We really  
wouldn't want to do that. It's excellent pastry and to defile it like  
that, well, it would be such a waste." He turned to Garak, as the places  
were set before them. "Your friend is very impetuous, isn't he?"

"Very." Garak cleared his throat uneasily. "I do, however, share his  
concerns on this particular point. I don't see how our...performing a  
sexual act will in any way..."

"Cardie bastards will fuck anything." Kira muttered from her place as  
she began to hack at the chocolate confection in front of her. "Girls,  
boys, old women--they raped them all. Raped the entire planet---YAH!!"  
She suddenly lunged at Garak with the fork and he barely avoided its  
sharp points before grabbing her wrist and holding her away from him.

"Dukat!" Garak held her away as she growled and snarled like a mad  
animal, spittle flying from her lips as she screamed foul curses in his  
face.

"Now you see why I asked that the knives be removed from the place  
settings." He sighed then took a swallow of his wine. "Get down Nerys.  
You're being horribly rude to our dinner guests."

Kira turned on Dukat suddenly, tearing her hand away from Garak then  
lunging at the seated Cardassian. One of the guards stepped forward as  
if to stun her but Dukat waved him off. For a long moment Kira stood,  
poised and mad above him, her elegant fingers curled like talons mere  
inches from his face.

"Get down Nerys." He commanded and her eyes began to blink rapidly with  
recognition.

"H-h-hate..."

"Yes, my sweet. They were villains weren't they?" He sighed and patted  
the chair next to him. "Sit down and finish your dessert."

Confused, Kira sat and stared down at the ruined plate of food.  
Occasionally, she muttered something unintelligible under her breath but  
she made no more aggressive movements toward Dukat or Garak.

"What the hell do you have her on, you sick bastard?" Julian rasped out.

"A bit of this and a bit of that." Dukat shrugged. "Some psychotropics  
and some tranquillisers. I have a very reasonable physician, you know."

"You're turning her into a deranged lunatic!" The human argued heatedly.

"What other kind of lunatic is there? Besides, don't knock lunacy, Dr  
Bashir." Dukat tutted, "Since becoming insane, whole new realms of  
thought and imagination have been opened to me. My thinking has actually  
become more linear, my purpose clearer than ever before. Insanity," he  
made a wide sweeping gesture, "is in the eye of the beholder."

"If that's so then why is she practically foaming at the mouth like a  
rabid animal?" Julian burst out. "Kira obviously does not see the grand  
possibilities insanity has to offer her!"

Dukat nodded sadly and glanced over to the drooling woman who was now  
rocking back and forth and humming a childhood tune. "It's the breeding.  
Bajorans are a passionate people--wonderful artists and such--but not a  
logical or thinking race and were designed to be of a servant class  
only. I'm sorry, I understand that you were raised to believe all people  
were equal, but," he patted Kira on the shoulder, "the fact of the  
matter is that Bajorans are and always will be an inferior species."

"Oh, but I thought you did all this," Julian's wide armed gesture mocked  
Dukat's own. "because you loved her so much." His voice grew thick with  
disgust.

"Oh, I do love her." He nodded, patting her thigh while she continued  
rocking in oblivious silence. "I love her enough to protect her from  
herself. I knew what her duties entailed--Ziyal told me before Sisko  
murdered her," Bashir looked as if he were going to object to that last  
bit but Garak silenced him with a look, "so I used a name I knew would  
spur her into action."

"But how did you know she knew about the baby?" Garak asked carefully.

"Who do you think allowed her to access the medical files to begin  
with?" Dukat snorted. "Really, Garak, you're slipping."

"So this whole thing was a trap?" Garak asked calmly.

"A very seductive trap." He replied. "I wanted Kira and I not only got  
her but the both of you as well."

"How did you know she wouldn't go to Sisko about the infant?"

"What infant?" Bashir asked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"And air our dirty familial secrets?" Dukat mocked. "She's far to proud  
for that!"

"I wish I knew what the hell was going on!" Julian's face was ruddy  
with frustration.

"It's a long story, doctor." Dukat waved him off. "Needless to say, we  
are a family again, Nerys and I." He tilted her chin up with one long  
elegant finger and gazed deeply into her eyes, "She's so much like her  
mother, you know. Her bone structure is the same, her eyes..." He kissed  
the tip of her slightly upturned nose and she blinked twice. "but she's  
so much better than her as well--stronger. She'll bear me sons and  
daughters who will join me in the fight to reclaim both Cardassia and  
Bajor, won't you, my dear?"

He stroked her face lovingly and she began to sigh and kiss his hands.  
"She'll be my queen."

"You're right, doctor." Garak said disgustedly. "Not even your vile  
Shakespeare could write such unintelligible drivel as this."

"Oh do shut up, Elim." Dukat smiled as he gave Kira one last kiss. "Such  
a stuffy old thing, isn't he?"

"If he starts calling her some of those vomitous 'pet' names you humans  
are so fond of, shoot me." Garak announced to the guards.

"I think I preferred the torture myself." Julian threw down his napkin  
disgustedly.

"This is the torture." Garak corrected him.

"It is growing late, isn't it? Oh well, I suppose we'd better get  
started." Dukat settled back in his chair. "You can begin at any time."

"I'm not raping anyone." Julian snorted. "Go ahead and kill me, that's  
what you're going to do eventually anyway."

"I won't kill you, doctor." Dukat shook his head innocently and  
signalled one of the guards who pulled out a large knife. "I'm going to  
have you castrated, instead."

Julian sat in tense silence as Garak rose to his feet and began to  
remove his outer garments slowly, "What are you doing?" He hissed  
turning on his companion.

"I'm merely doing as our 'host' has requested."

"This is insane! I'm not...doing anything like that! I refuse!"

"Doctor," Garak began reasonably, "Just get it over with and we can go  
back to our nice, uncomfortable cell with our genitals intact."

"You always were very practical, Elim." Dukat praised him, smiling  
benevolently.

"I won't!" Julian rose from his char and slammed his fist down on the  
wood with a bang. "This has gone far enough, now!"

Garak turned to the younger man and gave him a hard look. "I don't want  
to die, much less have my manhood chopped off by a lunatic so that he  
can watch me scream as he eats cake. Either you do what it takes to help  
us survive this farce or I will change the scenario and rape you,  
understood?"

"You wouldn't do that." Julian responded weakly.

"Oh, don't be so sure, doctor." Garak replied hard-faced. "When it comes  
to my own survival there's very little I won't do."

"He's telling the truth...for once." Dukat added. "Garak is a very special  
breed of bastard, that's one of the reasons I always enjoyed having him  
for dinner."

After he had removed his outer tunic and shirt Garak began to walk  
toward Julian. The guards watched in stone faced vigilance, but instead  
of attacking or attempting to escape he turned his back to the younger  
man and pulled down his trousers with a jerk, then swept the dishes  
aside with a clatter. He then bent at the waist and laid his head  
comfortably upon his forearms as he waited for the doctor to produce the  
next 'act' of Dukat's melodrama.

After a long moment's pause, Julian began to pull at his own clothes  
with angry jerking motions, glaring at Dukat murderously the whole time.

"If you need some help preparing for your performance, I'm sure Nerys  
could 'lend a hand' so to speak." Dukat offered pleasantly.

The human's face was as hard as stone when he addressed the seated  
Cardassian. "I will kill you, if it's the last thing I ever do."

"I look forward to your attempt. I'll consider it part of this evening's  
entertainment." Dukat said in a farcical tone as he took another sip of  
wine. "Continue, please."

Julian pulled down his briefs angrily then kicked the pile of clothing  
on the floor away, his tanned body glowing bronze in the warm light cast  
off by the dining room chandelier. For a moment, he looked down at the  
man he once fancied as his friend. Garak's face was hidden in his folded  
arms so he couldn't possibly begin to guess at his expression. Would he  
be angry, frightened, or perhaps somehow amused by the whole situation  
they found themselves in? Maybe, just maybe, his face would have no  
expression at all. Perhaps Garak was telling the truth again, a rarity  
turned common phenomenon these days. Perhaps he really thought of this  
as mere survival. The problem was that whether Garak chose to think of  
this act as a rape or not, Julian knew that it was he, himself, who  
would always bear the black mark of it on his soul.

His troubled eyes followed the scaled contours of his back and down his  
well-defined buttocks, which remained athletically firm despite his  
advancing years. He forced his mind to take in the sensations he now  
felt as he shakily gripped the other man's thigh for balance. His skin  
was surprisingly soft and warm. Somehow he'd always thought of it as  
being cold, but Garak gave off so much heat that Julian felt the hairs  
on his chest grow damp with sweat. On the other hand, maybe it was  
Julian who had grown cold within the last few moments. Under his palm,  
he felt the muscles of his leg jump slightly and as he brought his still  
flaccid sex near Garak's awaiting body, the heat of him, the mere  
sensation of closeness, made his penis begin to harden.

Perhaps he was this monster after all. Perhaps this was what he had  
wanted all along: just to use Garak and satisfy a curiosity and then to  
forget that it had ever happened. Maybe he had been looking for a good  
enough excuse to do precisely this. All his life he had wondered about  
his identity--not Garak's, but his own. Was he a man, a doctor, a  
soldier, or was he a monster hiding under his genetically altered face,  
which served no better purpose than to act as a mask? Now he truly felt  
like the monster he'd always feared he'd be...and he liked that feeling so  
very much that it made his blood run cold.

"No." Julian stepped back. "No!"

"No!" Kira repeated with a mad laugh. "Nonononononononono!"

"Hush, my dear." Dukat said with a sigh as he wiped the corners of his  
mouth with a fine linen napkin. "What now doctor?"

"I can't do this." Julian shook his head defeatedly.

Dukat shrugged, "Admittedly, I could not force myself to have sex with  
another man. To me....well, I just don't understand how the unnatural act  
of a man touching another could be in any way arousing." He sighed.  
"It's a personal choice. You however, I've seen the tapes and gauged  
your mannerisms...to me, this whole scenario seems like something you'd  
enjoy!"

"You think I'd enjoy raping my friend on your table?" He said  
incredulously. "Your deranged mind actually could believe I'd violate  
this man's body with my own for the amusement of yourself and your paid  
lackeys? You mad bastard! Your evil isn't the result of a twisted mind,  
it's your soul that's malformed."

"You know, you're right." Dukat nodded. "I'm afraid I've made an error  
in judgement doctor and I apologise."

Garak's face came up slowly as both men stared at Dukat in anxious  
silence.

"There are far too many people in this room right now." Dukat shrugged.  
"I'll send away the guards and then we'll begin."

Julian shook his head disgustedly and sat down in a nearby chair as  
Dukat began to order the guardsmen out of the room.

"Sir," One of the men, a dark-haired man who originally met them at  
their landing position, stepped toward Dukat. "I'm afraid I must  
object."

"What do I pay you for?" Dukat sniffed. "It certainly isn't to have you  
tell me what to do or say, is it?"

"No sir." He agreed.

"Then how can you stand there and object to anything?" He asked  
triumphantly.

"Simply because sir, your contract states in clear and concise language  
that if we are not allowed to guard your safety through our physical  
presence, then all agreements with our firm become null and void."

"Preposterous!" Dukat muttered. "Fine then, just leave one of the phaser  
rods with Kira and go. Should anything happen, which I assure you will  
not, your firm's position will not be jeopardised."

"Very well, sir." The man saluted then signalled his men who slowly  
exited the room. The last guard out handed Kira the weapon and looked  
upon his 'employer' in frank disapproval before exiting.

"There! No guards, no prying eyes, just the four of us." Dukat  
announced. Adams cleared his throat slightly as he refilled his glass.  
"Five of us, excuse me. Of course, Adams doesn't really count as he  
isn't an official part of our game, now does he? With that done, you may  
now complete your task."

"Our 'game'." Bashir shook his head in disgust. "You honestly think all  
of this is a game."

Garak straightened himself and turned to the younger man. "Doctor,  
listen very closely to....may we have some privacy please?" Garak glared  
at Kira who was standing very close, the rod in her hand bare inches  
from the Cardassian's cheek.

"Sit over here, Nerys." Dukat patted the chair closest to his own and  
reluctantly she sat.

Garak approached Julian and stood very close so that his mouth was  
nearly touching his sensitive earlobe then spoke softly and intimately.  
"I know this is hard, doctor. I know what Dukat has asked you to do goes  
against everything you believe about yourself both sexually and as an  
honourable man." When Bashir opened his mouth as if to comment, Garak  
squeezed his elbow sharply as a warning. "Just listen. This is not rape.  
This is not happening. All I want you to do is act, not think or even  
open your eyes."

The two men's gazes locked for a suspended moment in time before  
Bashir's long lashes fluttered down, shut tight against the other man's  
steady stare.

Julian shivered involuntarily, the small hairs at his neck brushing his  
skin as Garak took a deep breath. "Don't open your eyes, doctor. No  
matter what happens, as long as you don't open your eyes and just feel,  
then it isn't really happening, understood?"

Julian gave a slight nod then froze as he felt soft textured lips kiss  
his cheek then move down his chin. Slowly, as though not to startle him,  
Garak placed his hand over Julian's eyes and began to move downward.  
With his other hand he caressed the thick mat of hair decorating the  
human's finely muscled chest then hesitated over the dark nipples.  
Slowly, almost tentatively, Garak took one of the nubs in his mouth and  
worried it with his tongue. Julian jumped at the contact, but Garak's  
hand remained over his eyes as he continued to arouse him in alien and  
intimate ways.

Dukat continued to eat as Kira giggled and snorted derisively at the  
performance being staged at the foot of the table. "Ass fuckers," she  
gasped out with a laugh.

"Don't be rude, my dear." Dukat admonished around his fork.

At the sound of their voices, Julian winced. Garak's hand slid down his  
face in a slow caress and once again, Julian forced himself to give in  
to the sensation. The alien's lips travelled down his furred stomach to  
kiss the tuft of pubic hair that grew in abundance at the base of his  
rapidly hardening cock. The gentle hands continued their downward slide,  
soft palms and roaming fingers testing the musculature of the doctor's  
body and sending shivers of unexpected pleasure running through his wiry  
frame.

Garak's fingers curled slightly, his well manicured nails scraping at  
his skin as Julian felt his hot mouth open and take his penis inside,  
sucking gently but firmly. He gasped and grabbed at his head, his long  
fingers gripping the other man's dark hair as the pleasure continued to  
mount. Using his tongue, Garak manipulated the tip of Julian's penis,  
sucking and drinking of the few salty drops gathering there. One of his  
hands rested upon his ass, holding and rubbing his hip soothingly as the  
other played with his hairy testicles, weighing each in his hand before  
rubbing at the small area between his anus and cock which Julian  
discovered to his surprise was incredibly sensitive. He removed his  
mouth and Julian groaned only to gasp once more as heat surrounded his  
scrotum. Garak's tongue was slow and thorough as he sucked and nibbled  
at the loose skin before taking the head of the man's cock within his  
mouth once more. His finger slid further back, and Julian felt a rush of  
pure sensation as Garak's finger worked it's steady way toward his  
prostate making his teeth clench and he involuntarily pulled his head  
closer to him. He began to pump and gasp as he hugged the other man's  
head. As Garak pulled back, Julian found himself pressing his open lips  
to the top of his hair, sweat dripping off his aroused body.

Garak's hands came up and grasped Julian's wrists as he rose from the  
floor. He sat down upon the table, scooting back just enough so that he  
could pull Julian between his open thighs but leaving his legs to dangle  
from the table's edge. Glancing around him, he caught Dukat's eyes just  
as he bit into a piece of bread.

"Please pass the butter." He requested, very quietly so as not to  
disturb Julian's fragile concentration, with an outstretched hand.

Dukat put his roll down and handed him the butter wordlessly.

"Thank you." Taking a large amount of it in hand, he slathered it  
generously first between his legs then upon Julian's stiff member.

"You could have used the knife, you know." Dukat grumbled as he motioned  
the manservant to bring over another dish. "Using one's fingers is  
hardly proper etiquette."

Ignoring him, Garak pulled Julian close until his prick was flush with  
the tight skin of the Cardassian's anus then urged the doctor forward by  
clasping his legs behind the other man's back.

Julian hesitated at first, but the tightness of the other man was too  
good to ignore. Slowly he eased his way inside, eyes still shut as he  
ignored the sounds of Kira's drunken giggling and Dukat's loud  
crunching. In and out, slowly he pumped his hips lost in the sensation  
of sex. He bent at the waist, his hands seeking out Garak's chest. He  
could feel his breath coming in short gasps as rhythm matched rhythm.  
Julian started as a hand closed over his own and a soft thumb caressed  
his wrist. "Just feel." Garak's voice was his complete undoing.

His eyes flew open just as the tightness in the pit of his stomach came  
to the point of release. Blue eyes met brown and for a moment time stood  
still. 'Close your eyes and it isn't real' he had said, but Garak's eyes  
were open and probably had been open the entire time. Garak's eyes only  
then shuttered close and he, too, gasped in release.

As Julian began to pound his hips in and out, the table shook and Dukat  
quickly grabbed his wineglass, which was spilling over and lifted his  
plate defensively. At this, Kira laughed and continued laughing until  
Bashir stilled; his chest heaving as he laid his sweat drenched forehead  
upon the other man's chest. Garak lay still for a moment and then began  
to sit upright. Julian grabbed his elbow to pull him forward and their  
eyes locked again, mouths close, the scent of one another upon their  
bodies. With a shaky hand, Julian brushed a lock of hair from the other  
man's forehead, "Garak..."

Dukat felt his own breath catch, as the two men's faces grew closer.  
With a sick feeling, he looked down to see his penis had begun to grow  
painfully erect.

In a fit of disgust, Dukat slammed his hand down on the table with a  
bang. "It's missing something!"

"What?" Julian looked at him incredulously.

"It's missing something." Dukat repeated setting his plate down once  
more and draping his napkin across his waist to conceal his erection.  
"Perhaps if we tried it again..."

Julian fell back into his chair as Garak climbed off the table and sat  
on the floor, his forehead resting against his raised knee as he  
attempted to bring his breathing back under control.

"What do you think, my dear?" Dukat turned to Kira who was now eating  
her cake with her hand like a naughty child.

"They're ass fuckers." She replied, licking her fingertips. "All Cardies  
are perverts."

"They did enjoy themselves, didn't they?" Dukat murmured as Adams came  
over with a damp cloth and wiped the semen and various crumbs from that  
end of the table. "Still, it seemed....forced somehow."

Garak gave a joyless bark of laughter. "What did you expect?"

At the other man's harsh tone, Julian felt his soul crumple. God, he  
thought, what am I? What have I done?

"Something less contrived then that, certainly!" Dukat got up with a  
clatter. "Adams!"

"Yes sir?" The man said from beside him.

"Oh, sorry." He cleared his throat. "I want you to go get the Colonel's  
whip and some handcuffs...also, a holovid recorder. I may want to send a  
copy of this to Captain Sisko." He smiled broadly. "Oh yes, that would  
be lovely, wouldn't it?"

"But sir..." He began.

"What's the problem?" Dukat cut him off impatiently.

The other man hesitated, "Are you quite certain you'd like to be alone,  
sir?"

"Go, Adams."

"Yes sir." The butler replied as he reluctantly headed out the door.

"Oh, and bring some champagne." Dukat commanded before the door shut  
completely. "Now, Nerys I want you to take Dr. Bashir over to that side  
of the room to wait while Mr. Garak and I arrange the scene for our  
project. Get up Elim." Dukat said as he drew a small phaser from his  
pocket and motioned him to rise while straightening his long tunic to  
maintain his nonchalant appearance.

Kira took the phaser rod and held it toward the naked man threateningly  
as he also rose to his feet, his eyes haunted and his face grim with  
disgust. "You're a pretty boy, aren't you?" She asked with a snicker.  
"I'll bet you liked that."

"Don't tease him, Nerys." Dukat admonished as he pointed directing Garak  
to arrange the chairs in front of the shut curtains. "Oh yes, that makes  
a nice backdrop, doesn't it?"

Garak gripped the chair he was holding tightly then with a roar swung it  
toward Dukat who immediately blasted him with the phaser. "Stupid man!  
You think I didn't expect that?"


	8. "Your eyes were open."

Kira turned toward the noise in alarm. Julian seeing his advantage  
grabbed her wrist then brought his fist up and slammed it into her  
temple, sending her to the floor in a crumpled heap. Dukat turned and  
aimed but it was too late. With a scream, Julian plunged the rod into  
him, blood spraying out as the metal rod tore through muscle and bone.  
With a gurgle, Dukat looked down at the weapon imbedded in his chest and  
fell dead to the floor.

"I told you I was going to kill you, didn't I you monster?" Julian  
looked down at the corpse and smiled briefly. "Rot in peace, Dukat."

Garak moaned from the floor and Julian rushed over to him. Helping him  
sit up he said, "We have to get out of here now!"

Garak nodded and rose to his feet painfully, "The *grunt* guards should  
be here in a matter of minutes. I'm sure that they probably have phaser  
alarms and such."

Julian grabbed the clothes on the floor and began to dress hastily. "How  
are we going to escape the compound?"

Garak paused to catch his breath as he buttoned his trousers. "I left...a  
homing beacon on in the shuttle. With any luck, Sisko has figured out  
that you're not at the conference and I'm not really on Bajor and sent a  
search party to come get us but we should try to get to the runabout  
just in case."

"You knew we'd get caught?" Julian said outraged.

"Of course I did." Garak replied pulling the shirt over his head.

"You mean, you let us go through all this on purpose?" Julian's  
expression was livid. "Why?"

"It was the only way we could find the Colonel." Garak grabbed the  
phaser from Dukat's limp hand and headed toward the door. "I'll explain  
it all later doctor, but right now we have to get out of here."

Julian lifted the unconscious woman and slung her over one shoulder as  
they started toward the door. Just as they reached it however, Adams and  
two of the guards walked in, their phasers levelled at them  
threateningly.

"It appears I may have spoken too hastily, doctor." Garak replied as he  
held up his hands in defeat.

"I'm starting to get used to it." Julian said, adjusting Kira's weight  
with a grunt.

Adams cleared his throat, sparing Dukat's corpse a mere passing glance.  
"Your transportation is waiting for you outside, sir."

Garak and Julian exchanged uncertain looks before the older human  
gentleman continued, "Mr Dukat's bill was paid in advance, so unless you  
have any further need of our services..."

"No." Garak cleared his throat disbelievingly. "No thank you, that will  
be all...Adams."

"Actually, it's Cambert, sir. Mr. Dukat simply preferred to address me  
as Adams." He held the doors open and the guards stepped back. "This way  
then."

Julian followed the two men out of the door, sparing the guards and  
Dukat one last glance.

"Good help is hard to find." He shrugged smiling as the doors shut  
firmly behind him.

~*~

"Try hailing them again." The Chief said from the command seat.

"I've been hailing them for an hour." Nog complained.

"Then we'll keep hailing them for another hour or until they.."

//This is Abermarle, come in Rio Grande.//

"Julian?" O'Brien sat up straight. "What is your position?"

//We've just cleared K-25's atmosphere now.// He said gruffly. //Care to  
pick us up?//

"Hold on, we'll be there in..." He glanced over toward Nog.

"Approximately 10 minutes, sir."

"Ten minutes." O'Brien said with a huge grin.

//We'll be looking forward to it.//

"Are Kira and Garak with you?"

Julian looked over at his companions. Garak was sitting at the controls,  
as Kira lay on the cot unconscious.

"Yes. We'll need to be beamed up for medical attention." Julian said,  
"We...took a few bumps along the way."

//I'll just bet you did. Hang tight, O'Brien out.//

Julian gave Garak a troubled glance. "The captain...he'll expect a full  
report when we..."

"Nothing happened, doctor." Garak replied gruffly.

"Garak--"

"Nothing happened." Garak repeated. "We were tortured but that was all.  
Dukat was killed during our escape."

"Garak, I'm going to resign my commission when we get back." He shook  
his head. "My career pretty much ended after I told the truth about my  
genetic enhancement anyway, but with the criminal charges they'll  
expect..."

"I will deny anything ever occurred." Garak's eyes never wavered from  
the viewscreen, but Julian knew his expression was probably as rigid as  
his posture.

"A crime was committed by me, Garak. I won't ask you to lie about it."

Garak finally turned to the younger man, his eyes determined. "I'm not  
doing it for you, doctor. I'm doing it for myself."

Confused, Julian asked, "How is protecting me going to help you?"

"I'd rather we just dropped this subject." He responded stiffly. "The  
Rio Grande is going to be transporting us up in a few minutes so I  
suggest you make sure the Colonel is secure."

Reluctantly, Julian got up and walked to the back of the compartment.  
Garak's eyes followed his reflection before glancing back down to the  
controls. He then adjusted their heading toward the ship hailing them.

It was the last conversation they'd have for a very long time.

~*~

Julian sat at the table in silence. For nearly a week he'd suffered as a  
reluctant, patient in his own infirmary until his intern had pronounced  
him fit for duty again. Garak's wounds were a bit more severe so he  
remained a few more days but on the many occasions that Julian had  
attempted to join him at his bedside for a game of chess or lunch, Garak  
had sent him away. In fact, the only time Julian had ever been able to  
come near Garak's bed was when he had been medicated into a deep sleep.  
Julian had taken the opportunity to glance at Garak's chart where he  
noticed no mention of sexual assault. The doctor who had taken care of  
Garak had walked in and calmly asked for the chart back saying that as  
long as Bashir was a patient he didn't need to be working.

Julian had seen the man's eyes, though, and knew that he had kept  
whatever he'd found off the chart on purpose. The doctor, a Bajoran, had  
looked at Julian as though he were a monster despite his pleasant smile.  
Imagine that, a Bajoran protective over a Cardassian patient.

Julian hadn't attempted to approach Garak since.

"I still don't understand why you would just run off like that." Ezri  
said. "It wasn't exactly the wisest course of action, Nerys."

"Tell me about it." The Bajoran woman shook her head.

Odo gave her hand a squeeze, "It was family, you had to go."

"I wasn't even aware you had a brother." O'Brien said as he took another  
swallow of beer.

Kira sighed, "Neither was I until about six months ago. I had been doing  
some digging around in the old Cardassian data banks for anything on my  
mother I could find. She...she did what she had to do to keep us all  
safe--it took me a long time to accept that. I thought that if I could  
learn more about her life after she became Dukat's mistress that maybe I  
would get some sort of peace of mind."

"Closure." Ezri injected.

"Maybe." Kira looked down at her glass. "When I found out she had a son  
by Dukat, well, at first I was angry. I mean, the idea that she could  
bear that man's child..." she shook her head, "but then I realised that it  
wasn't the baby's fault who it's parents were. Ziyal hadn't asked to be  
Dukat's daughter, so why should M'yal suffer for it? I decided to track  
him down but all I found were dead ends. Every person I contacted said  
that the baby had been stillborn but there wasn't a death certificate or  
any burial records. When I saw his name on that flight plan, I knew it  
wasn't him. I knew it was Dukat, but if he was escaping, then all my  
hopes of ever finding my half-brother went with him. I had to go."

"What you should have done is gone to the captain." Nog said  
patronisingly and everyone glared, "What did I say?"

Worf looked at the young Ferengi impatiently. "The colonel was  
attempting to uphold her family honour. She could not go to outsiders  
while on so personal a quest." He nodded in her direction. "I would have  
done the same in her place."

"Thanks Worf." She said with a wry grin.

"Of course, I would have been better prepared." He added.

"Again; thanks Worf." She repeated a bit more sarcastically.

"So how did Garak find out about it?" Ezri asked, redirecting everyone's  
attention.

Odo cleared his throat. "He claims that one of his informants in the  
Orion Syndicate contacted him and said that the colonel was being held  
prisoner on a remote moon by Gul Dukat."

"So, why didn't he go to the captain then?" This time O'Brien asked.

"He said that his informant claimed Dukat still had someone aboard the  
station feeding him information and if he went to any of the staff with  
it, Dukat would know." Kira explained.

"At least, that's what he says happened." Odo replied with a scowl.  
"Personally, I think he's still hiding something."

"You always think he's hiding something." Ezri chuckled.

"That's because he always is." Nog answered for him.

"True." Odo nodded in the direction of the ensign approvingly. "In order  
to save Nerys and not risk tipping off Dukat's informant, Garak devised  
a plan in which Morn would take his place on Bajor while he and Doctor  
Bashir went to K-25 in secret."

"So, Julian was in on it the whole time?" Ezri's eyebrows shot up in  
disbelief as she turned to the man in question.

"No." Julian snorted.

"Tell us then, how much of that story is the truth and how much is a  
lie." O'Brien elbowed him jovially.

"Yeah." Nog piped up, "Does Garak really have an informant in the Mob?"

Julian sat in contemplative silence as all their eyes turned to him for  
confirmation. For the first time, Julian truly understood how Garak had  
felt as the naive young officer he had once been questioned him  
incessantly about his mysterious exploits all those years ago. Garak had  
not quite lied, nor had he told the truth and they had filled in the  
rest. Garak had told him that he had been telling him the truth for  
years and that all Julian had to do was listen. He was right.

"It's all true, Chief." He said rising from his chair. "Especially the  
lies."

As they all watched him leave, O'Brien shook his head. "Now where do you  
suppose he's going?"

~*~

Julian knocked on the door insistently, "Open up, Garak!"

Garak opened the panel and stood at the entrance, his hands buried  
within the folds of his dark grey robe. "Doctor, I'm very tired and it's  
late..."

Julian strode determinedly into his quarters. "I'm not leaving until I  
talk to you."

Garak closed the door and followed him into the room with an irritated  
expression. "And to what do I owe this rather unexpected..."

"Why wouldn't you talk to me?" Julian asked, cutting him off.

"I don't know what you mean." Garak replied as he walked up to the  
replicator. "Tea?"

"No. I don't want tea, I don't want mild conversation." He walked over  
to him and stood so that the tailor had to look him in the eye. "I want  
to know why you have been avoiding me."

"I felt it would be best if we avoided contact for a while, that's all."  
Garak said sipping at the hot beverage.

Julian's voice dropped as he moved slightly closer to the Cardassian.  
"If having me aboard this station causes you distress then just tell me.  
I can get a transfer or I'll resign like I offered to do in the first  
place."

"Don't be ridiculous!" The Cardassian burst out with a sharp laugh as he  
moved away from him and sat on the couch.

Julian followed him and placed his hands on the back of the cushions.  
"Then what is it you want me to do? I've tried to make amends the best I  
know how..."

"Julian..." Garak began.

"Julian?" The doctor asked in surprise. "You've never called me by my  
first name before."

"I'm sorry doctor, I meant no offence." Garak apologised.

"No." Julian moved to the front of the couch and sat down. "I want you  
to call me by my first name." He gave a dry chuckle, "I think,  
considering all that we've gone through that it's more than appropriate,  
don't you?"

"Julian, then." Garak nodded in agreement. "I told you before that there  
was nothing to forgive. I told you to do it and if our situations had  
been reversed I can assure you I would have done the same."

Julian winced but continued onward. "If that's true then why have you  
pushed me away like this? You wouldn't even say more than a few words to  
me when we were in the infirmary."

"I thought it would be best if we avoided talking about it in front of  
prying eyes." Garak looked at him. "In fact, I didn't want to discuss it  
anywhere, public or private truth be told."

"Why not?"

"What's the sense in it?" Garak shrugged. "It's done. Dukat's dead and  
Colonel Kira remembers nothing due to her drugged state. It never  
happened."

Garak got up from the couch to refill his cup leaving Julian alone with  
his thoughts. For a moment, Julian considered just walking out and  
letting the subject drop forever. It was, after all, what Garak said he  
wanted. Unfortunately, Julian had never been good at letting sleeping  
dogs lie.

"Your eyes were open."

"What?" Garak asked.

Julian's expression was determined. "You told me that if I closed my  
eyes and just gave into the moment, that I could leave and pretend it  
had never happened. You kept your eyes opened though, why?"

Garak didn't answer as he sipped at the hot liquid; his back turned so  
that Julian could not see his face.

"I need to know." Julian said. "Was it real for you or not?"

They had reached a crossroads Julian realised. Whatever Garak said in  
the next few moments would determine their future, no matter what that  
future may be.

"What do you know of the Cardassian culture, Julian?" Garak asked.

"Only what you've told me." He replied confused.

"On Cardassia, relationships between members of the same sex are  
considered...taboo."

"It's like that on Earth, too." Julian replied. "It's got better, but  
there is still a lot of 'behind closed doors' prejudice, especially in  
the military."

"On my world, it's not behind closed doors." Garak chuckled. "It's very  
openly disapproved of. In fact, in some providences it's still a  
punishable offence."

"What are you telling me Garak?" Julian asked walking toward him. "that  
you don't want to acknowledge it because you might return to Cardassia  
some day?"

"I doubt that will ever happen." Garak shook his head and faced him once  
more. "Actually, I was thinking of you and your career."

"I told you, I'm not really all that worried about my career." Julian  
shrugged.

"I don't believe you." Garak snorted. "You can't lie, doctor. You never  
could."

"It's Julian, remember?" He said quietly.

"Julian." Garak nodded, "Old habits...I'm a Cardassian, Julian. For better  
or for worse, I am the product of thousands of years of my people's  
beliefs and customs."

"I'm not...following you." Julian shook his head as he came tentatively  
closer to him, his eyes tracing the shape of his friend's face in the  
low light.

"I'd like to keep some secrets." Garak finally admitted. "There are some  
things that I don't want anyone to know. Call it pride or stubbornness,  
but it's the way I am."

Unable to prevent himself, Julian smiled crookedly. "I hate to tell you  
this Garak, but I'm fairly certain that everyone knows which way your  
'interests' run."

"There's a big difference between knowing and merely suspecting you  
know." Garak's smile matched his own. "I trust you will keep my 'secret'  
safe."

Julian nodded solemnly, "You have my word."

Garak walked toward the entrance and hit the panel so that the doors  
slid open. "With that said, I think it's best we bid one another  
goodnight."

Reluctantly, Julian headed out the door. Just as they started to slide  
shut though, he stopped them with his hand. "I don't want to lose your  
friendship, Garak. I've...got used to having you around."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Garak smiled sadly, "I've grown used to you as  
well." He pulled out a small PADD from the pocket of his robe. "It's  
from Earth."

"Shakespeare?" Julian asked hopefully.

"Gods no!" Garak scoffed. "A new author--Sofia something I believe. Her  
writing is almost Cardassian."

Julian lowered his eyes in amusement. "Maybe we should have lunch  
together and discuss it sometime."

"I'd like that." Garak agreed softly. With a nod of farewell, Julian  
removed his hand allowing the doors to shut then walked down the  
corridor toward his own rooms.

 

Epilogue...

Damar handed the seated woman the small package of artefacts  
reluctantly. "From what I understand, his death was swift and nearly  
painless."

Sha'al Dukat looked at her husband's former associate coldly. "That will  
be a comfort to his children I'm sure. What of the people who murdered  
him? Will they be punished for this crime or not?"

"Colonel Kira escaped with two others to a Federation stronghold, I'm  
afraid." He looked up with a determined expression. "I swear to you,  
after the war is won and we once again control Bajor and Terok Nor, Kira  
will be brought to justice..."

"I'm sure you'll see to it." The woman said dismissively.

Damar cleared his throat nervously. "I suppose I'd best be going. I have  
several meetings scheduled for today, you know."

"I'm sure you do."

Damar clasped her hand and kissed it briefly. "Again, Lady Dukat, the  
sympathy of the Cardassian people are with you and your family this  
day."

Damar walked out of the room in long, fast paced strides waiting only  
until he had crossed the threshold to mutter, "Cold bitch."

Sha'al looked at the small package in her arms sadly before laying it  
beside her on the sofa. "Send my son in please."

The servant at the door nodded and opened the door revealing a handsome  
young Cardassian man in his mid twenties, his features very like  
Dukat's, slightly less defined but still striking. "Mother..."

The woman in the ivory satin gown opened her arms and her son folded her  
into his embrace. "Mother, I'm so sorry."

She kissed his temples and smiled into his deep green eyes fondly. "Your  
father...My son, your father was a most difficult man to live with but I  
will still miss him."

He nodded silently.

"You are not the son of my body," she said stroking his face, "but you  
are the son of my heart and your father's heir. When we adopted you, we  
agreed you would have the rights a true son of the house of Kat would be  
entitled to."

"But what about Letka?" He asked hesitantly.

"He's too young, besides you are already well on your way to becoming as  
good if not a better politician than your father." She held his chin  
between her slender fingers, "Legate Kez has said he will arrange a  
marriage between our two houses and allow you to take over the seat  
Dukat held prior to his...illness."

The young man maintained his silence as she went on, "When I was  
pregnant with your sister, your father brought you to me saying that you  
were the son of a soldier who had saved his life." She smoothed his hair  
and smiled. "A madwoman--a Bajoran prostitute who fancied herself an  
assassin attempted to kill your father while he was serving on Terok  
Nor. When she came at him with a poisoned blade, this brave soldier ran  
to protect him and wound up being killed in the process. Before he died,  
Dukat swore he would see to it that his children would be cared for as  
though they were his own. Your mother, a good woman of an honourable if  
poor house had died in childbirth and he took you to me to raise. I have  
loved you from that day to this one and always shall."

The young man kissed her cheek as a tear escaped his eye. "I love you  
too mother."

"I want you to be all that your fathers--both of them--wished you would  
be." She dried his eyes with her sleeve. "You are the hope of this  
family, M'yal."

"I won't fail you." He swore.

"Don't repeat Dukat's mistakes." She warned. "The war isn't going well.  
I suspect that we will lose, especially with a drunk and a whoremonger  
like Damar running things. When the Federation wins, they will seek to  
make peace with us. They will look toward someone young and of a good  
name to take over the leadership of our world. Someone agreeable to  
their philosophy." Her face hardened as she looked upon him gravely.  
"Use their weakness to destroy them. Become this man they will seek and  
crush those who tried to destroy your father."

"I will do as you ask." The young man smiled and Sha'al had to stop  
herself from commenting on the amazing resemblance he bore to her dead  
husband. She knew he was Dukat's bastard and not the offspring of some  
noble soldier in the field. Even so, it was she had raised him and  
moulded him into manhood and he would succeed where her husband had  
failed. He was to be the instrument of her revenge against their  
enemies.

He kissed her palm lovingly. "First I will rise to power here on  
Cardassia and then within this 'Federation'." He smiled coldly, "And  
then Colonel Kira and her friends will die for what they have done."

"You are your father's son."

 

FINI


End file.
